Megaman Battle Network: Rise of a Champion
by strato-abyss17
Summary: Haseo Tomokari never had a PET, until one day when he finally got his wish. Now, a new threat is spreading its way through the Net, and it's up to Haseo and Blademan to put a stop to it.
1. The Perfect Gift

Chapter 1: The Perfect Gift

*sigh* _Another boring evening…_

Haseo Tomokari sat in his computer chair, tapping away on his keyboard. He was stuck doing his homework while all of his friends were jacked into the Net, hanging out with their Net Navis. Haseo was never able to join that fun, and ever since its debut, he really wanted a PErsonal Terminal, or PET for short.

For the residents of ACDC Town, having a PET was a basic necessity for everyday life. Adults could use it for important work, while kids could use it for downloading textbook and homework data. And inside their PETs was an Internet Navigator, called a Net Navi for short. Navis could pretty much do anything in the computer world, and most kids Haseo's age participated in the greatest pastime in DenTech City, no…in the entire world, Net Battling.

Haseo was a huge fan of Net Battling, especially if those battles involved Official Net Battler Eugene Chaud. He and his Navi Protoman were the top Net Battlers in the country until they were defeated by ACDC Town's very own Lan Hikari, and his Navi Megaman.

Since forever, he'd been learning how to program, and he was already on the path of finishing a custom Navi for himself. But, without a PET, he wasn't able to complete its activation, and it remained in his computer.

Haseo tapped one last time on his keyboard and saved the homework file to his flash drive. Then he looked at a special folder set aside in the window.

"Soon enough, my virtual friend," Haseo said to himself. "You will become a reality."

Haseo shut down his PC and went to his bed, dressing into his pajamas. As he collapsed on his bed, he couldn't help but dream about winning the title of #1 Net Battler. At this note, he quickly fell asleep.

* * *

"OK, Megaman! Battle routine, set!"

"Execute!"

Lan Hikari and Megaman were engaged in yet another Net Battle. This time, it was his beefy friend and rival Dex Oyama, and his equally beefy Navi Gutsman.

"You may have beaten me last time, but we've been training!" Dex sneered. "You and your puny Megaman won't stand a chance against me and Gutsman!"

"Yeah, we'll see about that!" Lan shouted, pulling out his starting combo. "Cannon, Attack +10, Battle Chips in! Download!"

Megaman's arm formed into the giant green cannon, and he fired off a powerful shot, hitting Gutsman head on.

"Good move, but try this on for size!" Dex shouted. "Guts Punch, Battle Chip in! Download!"

Gutsman's already massive fist grew bigger, and he launched himself at Megaman, who was ready.

"Reflector 3, Battle Chip in! Download!"

The red shield shimmered into view, and once Gutsman's attack made contact, a shockwave of equal power blew out and sent the giant yellow Navi flying back.

"Grr! Not yet! Guts Hammer, Battle Chip in! Download!"

Guts man's arms combined together into a giant hammer, and he slammed it on the ground, sending shockwaves towards the blue Navi.

"Prepare to lose, Dex! That stuff doesn't work twice!" Lan shouted. "Now, Megaman! Area Steal, Wide Blade, Battle Chips in! Download!"

Megaman disappeared from view, leaving Gutsman scratching his head saying, "Where'd he go?"

"Behind you."

Megaman rematerialized behind Gutsman and slashed him with the upgraded Sword attack, forcing him to jack out.

"What?! No way!" said a disgruntled Dex.

"Aw yeah! That's how it's done!" Lan shouted happily.

"Hmph! I lost this time, but I'll get you next time!" Dex shouted before cutting his link to the Net.

"Heh, he never learns," Lan laughed. "Nice work, Megaman!"

"You too, Lan!" Megaman replied. "Now we should jack out. Mom might get mad if we stay up too late."

"Oh, alright," Lan groaned. "Jack out, Megaman."

Megaman warped out of the Net and back to Lan's PET. The two brothers quickly fell asleep.

* * *

_The next morning..._

Haseo woke up, the morning sun blazing in his room. He felt particularly good today, since he was turning 13.

"Fwaaaaaaaahh!" he yawned loudly. "Well, happy birthday to me."

Haseo walked over to his dresser and dressed in his usual clothing; a black T-shirt with a blue circular ring with a lightning bolt pattern in the center, blue jeans and black sneakers. He also took his Battle Chip sack with him. Even though he didn't have a PET, he still needed them for his first period class, which was virus busting techniques. Even though the Navi he used was always defeated, he still kept a cool head and resisted the urge to crush every one of his chips.

Haseo walked down his stairs to his living room, but then he started to hear voices. He stopped and listened carefully.

"Do you think he'll pee himself when he gets it?"

"Eww! Gross, Dex!"

"What's taking him so long, anyway? It's not polite to make a lady wait."

"Just be patient, guys. He'll show up soon enough."

Haseo already knew what was going on, and he was jumping for joy on the inside. His friends were planning a surprise on him. He decided to go along with it and casually walked down his stairs and into the living room, where his friends from school; Lan, Dex, Maylu, and Yai, and his parents were waiting.

"Hey, guys," Haseo said. "What are you doing here?"

"We came down to give you a little present," Lan said, stepping forward and pulling out a small box.

"We all pitched in on this," Maylu said. "Even Ms. Mari helped out."

"Well, go on, Lan," Megaman said from Lan's PET. "Give it to him."

Lan nodded and handed Haseo the box. He wasted no time in snatching the box and ripping it open. His hopes were rising as he tore off the paper. But then his jaw dropped.

In the box lay a king size candy bar.

"Do you like it?" Lan said, a huge grin spreading across his face.

"Seriously?" Haseo said, not amused in the slightest. "Of all the gag gifts to get me for my birthday, you had to get me one that was the shape of a PET. I freakin' hate you guys."

Lan and Dex burst out laughing while Maylu and Yai just facepalmed.

"Sorry, I just couldn't help myself!" Lan said, wiping the tears from his eyes. "Here's your real present."

Haseo's eyes widened as Lan produced a brand new Link PET from his vest pocket. It was even in his colors; jet black with sky blue accents. In the center just below the screen lay the insignia on Haseo's shirt. He could already tell that this thing was heavily customized.

"No way!" He shouted, grabbing the PET from Lan and looking at it with wide eyes. "Is this for real?!"

"Yup, it's the newest model," Maylu said. "Happy Birthday, Haseo!"

"Oh boy..." he said.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Lan asked.

"Hold on, I'll be right back!" Haseo said excitedly before bolting back up to his room.

Once he reached his PC and fired it up, he jacked the PET into the PC and began the file transfer.

"Finally...you can experience the world!" Haseo said excitedly.

Once the transfer was complete, Haseo ran back downstairs and stopped in front of everyone, holding out his PET.

"So, does anyone know why I was never able to hang out with you guys after school?" Haseo began.

"We always just thought that you liked to do your homework," Yai said.

"Well, that's part of the reason," he said. "The real reason is because I've been taking programming classes since the fourth grade. And now, I'm about to activate my biggest project yet: my very own custom Net Navi."

"Whoa!" Lan said, surprised. "Did you say you programmed it yourself?!"

"Mmm-hm," Haseo confirmed. "And now it's time to turn it on and see if it works." Haseo opened the file explorer and started the A.I. Navigation program.

The entire group was in awe as the new Net Navi shimmered into the screen. Like Haseo's signature colors, the Navi was black with sky blue accents, the lightning bolt pattern on a crest on his chest and on his helmet where his ears would be. He had slight shoulder armor, as well as a small crest on his samurai like armor that sported a small gem. On his back were two swords that resembled that of the Wide Sword Battle Chip; a bright blue blade that was wider on the tip. The helmet had a blue visor that was able to put up a heads-up display with any data on the opponent. Long black hair was flowing from the back of his helmet.

"Blademan, are you awake?" Haseo said. "Please respond."

The Navi's eyes remained closed. No reply.

"Hello? Blademan?" Haseo said, beginning to get nervous.

No reply.

"Come on, wake up buddy!" Haseo shouted frantically.

Still no reply. Haseo was ready to give up, until the Navi's eyelids shot open to reveal striking green eyes. He yawned and stretched, looking around his new home.

"Huh?" he said, unaware that he was in a different home. "Where am I?"

"You're in a PET, my virtual friend," Haseo said, relieved that he had finally woken up. "You're finally running. How does it feel?"

Blademan stretched his back some more and said, "Better than being stuck in a folder, that's for sure."

"Great," Haseo said. "So, no bugs?"

"None that I know of," Blademan responded.

"That's a relief," Haseo said. "I'm Haseo. It's great to finally meet you."

"Haseo..." Blademan said. "Cool. I'm Blademan. Great to finally meet you, too."

"Uh, sorry to interrupt the moment, but we're about to be late!" Maylu said, checking the time on her PET. "C'mon, let's move!"

Haseo nodded, putting his PET into his pocket and bolting out the door. On the way, Blademan spent his time conversing with the other Navis.

"Hi!" said a rather cute Navi in hot pink armor. "I'm Roll! Glad to meet you!"

"Nice to meet you, Roll," Blademan said, nodding at her and smiling. "I'm Blademan."

"And I'm Megaman," the blue navi spoke up while stepping forward beside Roll. "The polite one in the gold back there is Glyde, and the big beefy one is Gutsman."

Glyde did a slight bow, whereas Gutsman stomped forward, towering over the black Navi.

"So, you're the new guy, huh?" Gutsman said, cracking his knuckles. "Hmph, pretty puny looking if you ask me."

"Oh, really?" Blademan said, looking up at him, not intimidated at all. "Well, sorry to burst your big bubble, tough guy, but you're not much to look at, either."

"What'd you say?!" Gutsman said, pounding his fists together. "Someone's about to be a little black stain on the ground!"

"I'm right here, come and get some!" Blademan said, a black mask covering his face. He drew his swords and went into a battle stance.

"Hey, what's going on in there?!" Haseo shouted. He had been looking in on them the whole time they were arguing.

"Some tough guy thinks he can take me in a fight!" Blademan said, ready to let loose at any time.

"Save it for the battlefield, guys," Haseo said. "Now's not the time to get in each other's faces."

"What's wrong, Haseo?" Dex challenged. "Afraid that your Navi can't hold his own? From the way you fight, I'd be scared too."

Haseo bristled at that remark. He looked at Dex and said, "OK, you wanna fight, let's have it out! Take your best shot!"

"Hey! You know the rules!" one of the teachers said, walking up to them. "No Net Battling on school grounds! Get to class!"

The Navis returned to their respective PETs, Gutsman turning to Blademan and saying, "You're mine," before exiting.

Blademan retracted his mask and sheathed his swords.

"I can already tell," Blademan said. "That guy's gonna be a real nuisance."

"Just keep your head straight," Haseo said. "We'll get our chance."

The kids made their way to Class 5-A to start homeroom, knowing that a lecture from Ms. Mari was imminent.

* * *

"OK, class!" Ms. Mari spoke loudly. "Today, we'll be learning about Program Advance."

As soon as those words left her mouth, every kid in Class 5-A murmured excitedly.

"Program Advance is a very developed way of battling," she explained. "The right combination of Battle Chips will create a totally devastating attack that is sure to delete anything in its wake. A popular example is Giga Cannon."

After she said this, she looked around the room, saying, "Who would like to demonstrate Program Advance to the class?"

Haseo immediately jumped out of his seat and made his way to the front of the room.

"Ah, Haseo," Ms. Mari said with joy. "How are you enjoying your new PET?"

"Pretty good, thank you," he said, smirking.

"So, by coming up here, you must already have your own Net Navi," she said. "Or are you using the rental?"

"Let's just say that you don't have to worry about me," Haseo replied.

"Well, alright, then!" Ms. Mari said happily. "OK, who will be his opponent?"

She looked around the room. "Wow, Lan isn't volunteering?" She then locked eyes onto the young Net Battler, who was sawing logs.

"LAN!"

"Wah!" he screamed, waking up with a start. The entire class laughed.

"Lan Hikari, you may be the best Net Battler in the class, but that doesn't give you an excuse to fall asleep in it!" Ms. Mari scolded.

"Sorry, Ms. Mari," Lan said sheepishly.

"Now, get up here and help Haseo and I demonstrate a Program Advance," Ms. Mari ordered.

Lan nodded and walked up to the electronic blackboard.

"Now, jack into the blackboard, if you please," Ms. Mari instructed.

The two boys nodded. Haseo had been waiting his whole life to say these words:

"Jack in, Blademan, Power up!"

* * *

Author's Note: My name is Strato Abyss. This is the reworked version of a Megaman Battle Network fanfic I had written a few years ago in a notebook. I figured I'd post it on this site for you readers to enjoy.

Now, in my opinion, Battle Network was one of the greatest Megaman series ever made (second only to Star Force), and it's severely underappreciated, especially by all those "hardcore" fans who'd rather stick with their NES. It was different in a lot of ways, and any mistakes in the series is entirely excusable.

Now, to clarify what this fanfic will be running off of. This will be based off of events that happened in the game, but will have some mechanics from the anime, and will include all Battle Chips from the game series, as well as all Program Advances. Chip codes will not be used, so I'll definitely have to clarify what advance I'm using. Also, Blademan will be able to utilize the Cross System, which also means he'll be able to form change.

That being said, I hope you enjoy the first chapter of my newest work, "Megaman Battle Network: Rise of a Champion".

Strato Abyss signing out.


	2. Battle!

Chapter 2: Battle!

The two Net Navis entered the blackboard's cyberspace. It was like your typical Net Battle machine, a simple background with a flat surface so the Navis could go all out with no terrain problems.

"Now, Haseo, do you know any other Program Advances besides Giga Cannon?" Ms. Mari said from the real world.

"Well, I know there's one in my set folder right now," Haseo said. "I've never used it before, but the combination is Cyber Sword, Wide Sword, and Long Sword."

"Yes, good!" Ms. Mari said. "And, Lan, I believe you have a Giga Cannon combo in your folder?"

"Yeah," Lan said, pulling out his three Cannon chips.

"Good!" Ms. Mari said. "You two are going to demonstrate the ferocity of Program Advance in a battle against each other."

"What?!" Lan shouted.

"Hey, I just got this Navi! I'm not going to let it get deleted!" Haseo exclaimed.

"Haha! Just kidding!" Ms. Mari laughed. "Nah, you'll just be taking on a horde of Mettaur viruses. Who would like to go first?"

Blademan stepped forward, activating his mask and drawing his swords. Ms. Mari's Navi stepped forward and summoned 20 Mettaurs, all in a row, looking ready to delete.

"Using your Program Advance attack, you must defeat all of the viruses," the Navi said, stepping off to the side.

"OK, Blademan! Time to see what you can do!" Haseo said, pulling out his Sword chips. "Cyber Sword, Wide Sword, Long Sword, Battle Chips in! Download! Program Advance, activate!"

Blademan's swords grew bright and extended to a massive length. The Program Advance attack "Life Sword" appeared on his HUD.

"Life Sword, GO!"

The jet black Navi dashed forward at a nearly invisible speed, slicing with both swords and deleting all of the viruses with ease.

"Hmph, that was almost TOO easy," Blademan scoffed, spinning his swords and sheathing them.

The entire class was awestruck, not because of the attack, but at how fast it was executed. Blademan was so fast that he was almost invisible. Even Haseo didn't know he was that quick.

"Now it's our turn!" Lan shouted, slotting in his Cannon chips. "Cannon x3, Battle Chips in! Triple download! Program Advance activate!"

Mega man's arm transformed into the massive Giga Cannon, and he took aim as Ms. Mari's Navi spawned another wave of Mettaurs.

"Giga Cannon, fire!"

The explosion was enough to destroy the viruses by shock damage. The Giga Cannon already had a massive explosion as a side effect, but because of its lower power compared to its higher forms, there would've been a few stragglers left.

"Wonderful job, Lan!" Ms. Mari complemented. "However, I think that in terms of execution, Haseo takes the cake."

Haseo smirked. He had to admit, for once, it felt good to be on the winning end of a demonstration.

Just then, the bell rang, and the class was called for break.

It was no exaggeration to call Lan jealous. Haseo hadn't had Blademan for even a day and he had practically swept the class with his attack. And it wasn't even a real challenge!

"I know what you're thinking, Lan," Megaman warned him. "It's not a good idea."

"I'm gonna challenge him to a battle after school," Lan said. "I wanna see what he can really do."

"Huff...you never change..." Megaman sighed.

* * *

Eugene Chaud was scoping out ACDC School from a distance, keeping an eye on the person he was told to watch. There was a report of a Net Navi entering the cyberworld that had not been registered by SciLab. Because of incidents in the past, the Official Net battlers were ordered to stay on the lookout for Navis that didn't have a registration code in their data.

"So, what's the order?" Protoman said as he came back from the School's Net.

"We'll wait until there aren't so many civilians around, then we'll strike," Chaud said. "We don't want to take any chances."

* * *

_After school..._

"Alright, Blademan," Haseo said, looking at his Navi. "Time to get home so we can check out the Net."

The two were right outside the park when Haseo was stopped by Lan.

"Hey, Lan. What's up?" Haseo said casually.

"I challenge you to a Net Battle!" Lan said aggressively. "It's time to see what you can really do!"

"Oh, I get it," Haseo smirked. "This is about the demonstration, isn't it? Fine, but you'd better be prepared to lose!"

The two headed over to the squirrel statue in the middle of the park. When it was built, it had a computer installed in it, as well as a jack-in port so that kids could battle. Haseo and Lan pointed their PETs at the statue.

"Jack in, Megaman! Power up!"

"Jack in, Blademan! Power up!"

The two Net Navis were sent into the Squirrel Comp, which had a really bright yellow cyber sky and a green ground. They faced each other, weapons already drawn.

"Alright, Blademan!" Haseo shouted. "Battle routine set!"

"Execute!" Blademan responded.

"Battle routine set!" Lan shouted.

"Execute!" Megaman said, cocking his Mega Buster.

Megaman started the battle immediately, firing off a few shots from his Mega Buster. However, Blademan quickly deflected the shots with his swords.

"You'll have to do better than that!" Haseo said, pulling out his starting combo. "Vulcan 1, Cannon, Battle Chips in! Download!"

Blademan sheathed his swords, his left arm turning into a three-barreled gun and his right arm turning into the green Cannon. He dashed in, firing off the three shots and sending Megaman up into the air while he was at it. Then he jumped up to meet him and fired the Cannon point-blank, smashing him into the ground. Blademan landed and jumped back, his arms going back to normal and drawing his swords.

"We're not losing today!" Lan said, slotting in three chips. "Barrier 100, Area Steal, Wide Blade, Battle Chips in! Download!"

A purple barrier shimmered up around Megaman and he disappeared from view. Blademan remained cautious, his heads-up display running a diagnostic on the arena.

"OK, let's go on the defensive!" Haseo said, hovering three chips over the slots.

There was dead silence, until…

"Reflector 1, Area Steal, Wide Sword, Battle Chips in! Download!"

Megaman shimmered back into view, launching his attack, but the shield that spawned up around Blademan sent a shockwave that obliterated Megaman's Barrier. Then, Blademan pulled the same number, teleporting behind Megaman and slicing with both swords, damaging him severely.

"Whoa! He's fast!" Lan said, surprised. "Megaman, you OK?!"

Megaman flipped back up and said, "I'm good! Let's win this!"

"Not if I have anything to say about it!" Haseo said, slotting in another chip. "Tornado, Battle Chip in! Download!"

Blademan spun around at incredible speed, summoning a massive windstorm. But Megaman had other plans.

"Double Shot, Battle Chip in! Download!" Lan said, slotting in the chip.

Megaman stomped the ground, peeling off two of the panels in front of him and kicking them at Blademan. He took them full-on, shutting down the Tornado attack.

"OK, then! Try this on for size!" Haseo shouted, slotting in his unique chip. "Area Sword, Battle Chip in! Download!"

Blademan's swords began to glow bright, and he spun around with both, sending a sharp wave out in all directions, catching Megaman and slamming him back into the wall. He slumped to the ground, heavily exhausted. His body beamed into the cyber sky as he was forced out of the Squirrel Comp.

Lan was starstruck. Haseo had won.

"Yeah! We did it!" Haseo cried out of sheer joy.

"No…no way!" Lan yelled. "How did I lose?!"

"Well, it's simple," Haseo said, going statistical on the young Net Battler. "Since I moved here a few years back, I've been analyzing your battle strategies. I actually used Megaman for a little inspiration on my Navi's design."

"Huh…?" Lan said, scratching his head. "Y'know what? I'm not gonna bother with it. But know that I will beat you!"

Then he smiled. "That being said, I haven't had a battle like that in forever. It actually kinda feels good to lose for once."

Haseo saw Lan tap a few buttons on his PET. Then, a prompt showed up on Haseo's PET.

"What just happened?" Haseo asked.

"I just made Megaman your Link Navi," Lan said. "You can operate him any time you need to. It also gives you the power to use the Cross System."

"Really?" Haseo said, blown away. "You'd let me use Megaman?!"

"Sure!" Lan said with a smile. "So long as you don't put him into TOO dangerous of situations."

"Thanks, Lan!" Haseo said, returning the smile. He soon decided to return the favor, allowing Blademan to be Lan's Link Navi. The two soon parted ways, going back home to jack into the Net.

* * *

_That evening…_

"OK, Blademan," Haseo said, preparing his home page. "This'll be your first time jacking into Net City. Are you ready?"

"I've been ready, let's do this!" Blademan said enthusiastically.

"OK," Haseo said, pointing his PET at his machine. "Jack in, Blademan! Power up!"

Blademan was beamed into Haseo's home page. It was like a paradise, the ground covered in grass. In the center was a massive training area, similar to that of an old Electopian arena. There was also a temple in the background, and the cyber sky was a sky blue.

"I designed the page to help you get into focus while we train for our ultimate goal," Haseo said. "What do you think?"

Blademan looked around a bit longer, then he whistled. "Sweet setup! I could get used to this!"

Suddenly, Blademan felt something pass behind him. He activated his mask and drew his swords.

"What's wrong, Blademan?" Haseo asked, pulling out his Battle Chip sack.

"There's someone here," Blademan said, pulling up a scan on his visor. There were no viruses on the page, but there was something here. And whatever it was, it wasn't friendly.

Dead silence. Then…

KLANG!

Blademan whirled around and clashed swords with an unfamiliar Net Navi, covered in a grey jumpsuit with slight red armor. His helmet was red, with a white stripe and a crest swiping back to the back of his head. The visor was so dark that it gave Blademan the impression that he was wearing shades. On his arm was a purple Cyber Sword, integrated into his arm no doubt.

"Ggh! What's your problem?!" Blademan said, barely managing to hold him back. The red Navi smirked and knocked one of his swords away. Blademan rolled to the side and sliced with the other, but the Navi parried the attack like it was child's play.

"Wait a sec…I've seen him somewhere before," Haseo said, recognizing the Navi. Then it hit him. "That's Protoman!"

"Hmph…so you know me," Protoman said, not going out of his stance. "So…how'd you get this Navi, huh?"

"I programmed Blademan myself," Haseo said. "I was going to register it at SciLab tomorrow."

"Why'd you try to attack me?!" Blademan shouted, swords still drawn.

"To see if you were evil or not," Protoman said. "Can't take any chances these days. So I'm afraid I'll have to delete you now."

"NO! You can't!" Haseo cried. "We're not giving up like that! You want a fight, you're gonna get one!"

"That's right!" Blademan agreed. "You want me deleted? You're gonna have to fight me for it!"

Protoman smiled and said, "Very well."

The two Navis dashed at each other, ready to fight for their lives.

* * *

Author's Note: Just a reminder, this takes place after the whole Cybeast incident. Each Navi that is created it fitted with a sort of ID so that it is able to be recognized as a normal Navi. If it is created by someone other than certified programmers, it brings up a red flag and the Officials are sent to investigate.

Anyway, the next battle will be pretty epic, seeing as there are two swordsmen going at it. This oughta be good.

Strato Abyss signing out.


	3. Registration

Chapter 3: Registration

"Step Sword, Battle Chip in! Download!"

Those were the words that started the battle. Protoman dashed forward at immeasurable speed, but Haseo was faster, sending a Reflector chip to Blademan. The sword attack struck the shield, but Protoman got out of the way before the shockwave could hit him.

"OK, now it's on!" Haseo shouted. "Area Steal, Katana 1, Battle Chips in! Download!"

Blademan flashed and disappeared, but Protoman remained vigilant, keeping his guard up for any sign of his target. Chaud was hovering over the slot, ready to send chip data when it was needed.

From a distance, Blademan saw a split-second opening, and he was going to take it. He rematerialized behind Protoman and activated the Katana attack, slicing wide with one sword and piercing long with the other. Protoman stumbled forward, surprised that the Navi could actually land an attack.

"Hmph, looks like you're not one to be underestimated," Chaud said. "But I'm afraid I'll still be putting you under arrest. As for your Navi, he'll die by the sword. An honorable way to go, don't you think? Protoman!"

Protoman got back into his battle stance.

"Delta Ray, Giga Chip in! Download!"

Haseo blanched. "Did he just say 'Giga Chip'?"

"Ah, crap," Blademan said, putting up his swords.

Protoman launched himself at Blademan and attacked in order from Cyber Sword, to Wide Sword, to Long Sword. The final attack sent Blademan flying into the wall of the arena, leaving an imprint. Blademan slumped to the ground, not moving.

"Blademan, NO!" Haseo cried.

Protoman walked up to the unconscious Navi, ready to finish the job. But Blademan had other plans, pulling his swords in and sweeping Protoman off his feet. The black Navi flipped up and landed behind Protoman, swords drawn and still able to fight.

"How in the heck…?!" Chaud said, his cool starting to dissipate.

"I've had fun, but I think it's time to end it," Haseo said, slotting in his trump chips.

"Cyber Sword, Wide Sword, Long Sword, Battle Chips in! Download! Program Advance activate!"

Blademan's swords grew to a massive size as the Life Sword Program Advance took shape. Even Protoman was thinking whether he would survive or not.

"Life Sword, GO!"

Blademan launched forward, slicing with both swords in a cross motion, hitting Protoman with the full ferocity of the attack. He screamed in agonizing pain as he was forced out of Haseo's homepage.

"Aw, yeah!" Haseo shouted with joy. "We actually won!"

Chaud shook his head as Protoman was beamed back into his PET.

"I don't know how you beat me, but if you're strong enough to stand up for what's right, then so be it," he said, his cool attitude returning. "I'll be expecting you over at SciLab for your registration."

With that, Chaud cut his link to the Net, leaving Haseo starstruck.

"He acknowledged my skill as a Net Battler..." Haseo said dreamily. "This is freaking sweet!"

Blademan shook his head, retracting his mask and sheathing his swords. "I don't care that he's an Official, all I care is that I managed to wipe the smirk off that Navi's face. Priceless."

"In any case, we should get some sleep," Haseo said, yawning. "SciLab closes early tomorrow, so we gotta hurry and get you registered."

Blademan nodded, then looked at the temple near the arena.

"By the way, what's the point of that temple?" Blademan asked curiously.

"Oh, right!" Haseo said. "You can live there if you want. I set it up so you can use it to go into sleep mode when you're tired. What do you think?"

"Well, alright!" Blademan said, heading to the temple. "I'm gonna catch some sleep. I'll see ya tomorrow."

Haseo nodded, waiting until Blademan was asleep before going that way himself.

* * *

_The next day…_

Lan sent another e-mail to Haseo's PET. He had already sent three messages to him asking where he was at, and he hadn't answered any of them. He finally decided to call Haseo's mother.

"Hello?" she answered politely.

"Mrs. Tomokari, it's Lan," he said. "Is Haseo home?"

"No, I'm afraid he had something to do," Mrs. Tomokari replied. "He went to SciLab to get his Net Navi registered."

"OK, thanks!" Lan said before he hung up. "C'mon, Megaman! Let's head over to SciLab!"

"Why? We don't have anything to do over there," Megaman said.

Just then, Lan's PET rang in with a call from his dad.

"Hello?" Lan said.

"Lan, how are you?" Dr. Hikari asked.

"Oh, hey Dad," Lan said. "What's up?"

"I have something I want to show you," Dr. Hikari said sternly. "Come over to my lab."

"O-OK," Lan said, confused by his father's tone of voice. Dr. Hikari cut the link, leaving Lan standing there aghast.

"Well, looks like we have a reason to head over there now," Megaman said. "Let's go see what Dad wants."

"Right," Lan said, triggering his skates and dashing off to the metroline.

* * *

Haseo stood in front of the SciLab doors, looking up at the massive complex.

"What's up with you?" Blademan asked. "You're acting all nervous. It's just a registration."

"Yeah, but there's also an ability test involved," Haseo said. "If we don't pass, you'll be deleted."

"Oh, come on!" Blademan shouted. "We've beaten the best Net Battler in the entire city, as well as an Official! Why are you scared?!"

Haseo jumped as Blademan gave his short yet powerful speech. He forgot that the volume was all the way up, and now all of the people in the square were looking straight at him.

"OK, OK! I got it," Haseo said, looking around nervously. "Let's go."

The two were about to head in when Haseo heard someone call his name. He turned around to see Lan running up behind him.

"Hey, Lan," Haseo said. "What are you doing here?"

"My dad called me here," Lan said. "So, you're going in for registration, huh?"

"Heh, yeah," Haseo said. "I'm pretty nervous, but I'm confident that I can beat anything they throw at us."

"Yeah, you weren't earlier…" Blademan scoffed.

"Quiet, you!" Haseo hissed.

"It doesn't matter," Lan said. "I guess I can watch your registration so you can have someone back you up!"

"Thanks, Lan," Haseo said with a smile. Then he looked back at the doors.

"Well then, shall we?" he said.

The two walked in to the complex, Haseo feeling confident because of Blademan's short pep talk.

_With our teamwork, nothing can stop us!_ Haseo said to himself.

* * *

While Haseo and Lan walked into the SciLab complex, a lone figure sat in the treetops, looking at the young Net Battlers.

"Hmm…looks like I've found my next targets," he said with an evil grin.

"What should we do, Kazuto?" said a Net Navi from the boy's PET. He was a pure black Navi, the only adverse color being his eyes, which were a striking red. The Navi was decked out in thick plate armor, and he was wielding two katanas.

"Follow him through the Net," Kazuto said. "We'll analyze his abilities first, then we'll strike when he's alone."

"Got it," the Navi said, jacking into the Net.

* * *

"Welcome to SciLab," the receptionist said. "How can I help you?"

"I'm here for a registration," Haseo said, putting his PET up onto the desk. The receptionist connected the PET to her computer, downloading data about the owner and his Net Navi.

"So, you're Haseo Tomokari, and the Navi you're registering is called 'Blademan', correct?" she said.

"That's right," Haseo answered, taking his PET back from the receptionist.

"OK! This way, please," the receptionist said, opening a door to behind the desk. Haseo and Lan stepped in, where the receptionist directed them to a room where three scientists were waiting.

_They're already here…_Haseo thought. _Chaud probably told 'em about me._

"Ah, Haseo Tomokari," one of the scientists said. "We've been expecting you."

_Nailed it, _he said to himself.

"Step forward and jack into the terminal in front of you," the scientist said.

Haseo nodded, pointing his PET at the terminal.

"Jack in, Blademan! Power up!"

Blademan beamed into the terminal's Net, activating his mask and drawing his swords, ready for anything.

"First will be a physical examination of your Net Navi's file system," the first scientist said, typing on his keyboard.

Blademan felt something going through his program matrix, and it made him shiver slightly. Navis didn't like it when someone rooted around in their files when they were awake. It felt like he was being seen without his jumpsuit.

"Hmm…everything checks out," the scientist said, ending the scan. Blademan sighed with relief; he was glad he passed the first test.

"Next will be an examination of your battling abilities," the second scientist said, tapping away on her keyboard and spawning a wave of viruses.

"You will fight through three waves of viruses without your NetOp's help," the scientist said. "Begin when you're ready."

Blademan closed his eyes, smiling beneath his mask. He dashed forward and sliced wide with one sword, destroying the three Mettaurs that she had spawned.

"Perhaps that was a little too easy," the scientist said, pulling up three Base Gunner viruses. Blademan dodged to the side as each virus locked on to him and fired their Mach Gun attacks. Once they were finished, he ran in and destroyed all of them with just a cross swipe of his swords.

The scientist was amazed. No one had destroyed those viruses in so little time. She knew that Haseo had spent a lot of time on perfecting his Navi's abilities.

"Final test," she said, activating the final level.

Blademan shivered as he was left looking at three Spikey viruses. These were known to be fast and incredibly violent, utilizing a Heat Shot attack. They were also known to fight better in packs.

"Whenever you're ready," she said, smiling cruelly.

Blademan took a deep breath and steeled himself. As far as he was concerned, it was just another virus busting. He opened his eyes as the three Spikies charged him.

Blademan rolled underneath as the three wolfish viruses launched their attacks. Then he jumped up and deleted the first with a swipe of his swords. The other two ran at him from the side, but Blademan was already prepared, spinning with his swords extended, catching the remaining Spikies and dicing them up like a Netopian sushi chef.

The rest of the scientists were immediately impressed. No one had deleted the final wave in such little time.

"Very impressive, Blademan," the battle scientist said. "You've passed the second test."

Blademan spun his swords and sheathed them. "Bring on the next test! I'm ready!"

"Your final test will be your data analysis skills," the third scientist said. "There is a piece of data hidden somewhere in Net City. You must find it."

A portal shimmered into view inside the terminal that led to Net City. Blademan nodded and stepped in, teleporting to the city square.

"The data will be a Variable Sword Battle Chip," the third scientist said. "If you find it, I'll even let you have it."

Blademan nodded, taking a massive leap at one of the buildings and running up the wall, hitting the top and landing.

"Time for a little free run," Blademan said, smiling.

The Net Navi dashed forward and started jumping across the skyscrapers that covered Net City, also running diagnostics on the area to find any loose chip data. After a few minutes, Blademan stopped, getting a signal from one of the main streets. He jumped down and landed smack in the middle of the street, earning a few odd looks from the Navis walking through.

"It's somewhere around here," Blademan said, fine-tuning his analysis. He finally locked onto a piece of Battle Chip data lying near a trash can. Blademan walked over and picked it up, running a scan on it.

"Yup, this is a Variable Sword, all right," he said, compressing the data.

"Good work, Blademan. You can jack out now," Haseo said.

Blademan nodded and logged out, beaming back to Haseo's PET.

"Congratulations, Haseo and Blademan," the lead scientist said. "You've passed all three tests. You are now registered in the SciLab database."

Haseo breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Thank you." He looked down at his PET and said, "We did it, Blademan! We won!"

"Yeah, and we got some new chip data while we were at it!" Blademan said.

"Oh, yeah," Haseo remembered, slotting in a blank chip. Blademan copied the data onto the chip, and the Variable Sword Battle Chip pushed its way out of the slot. Haseo pulled it out and looked at it before putting it in his Battle Chip sack.

"I think it's time to head home," Haseo said. "This was a long day. I'm bushed!"

"OK, hero boy," Blademan said, rolling his eyes. "But first, Lan sent us a message. He wants us up at his dad's lab."

"Huh? I wonder what for?" Haseo asked himself.

"Well, let's find out!" Blademan said. "Let's hitch a ride on the elevator!"

* * *

Author's Note: Man, I didn't realize it would be this hard to juggle two incomplete fanfics. I spent some time updating Mystery of the Legend Keepers, and now I've finished this one. Enjoy.

Strato Abyss signing out.


	4. Close Call

Chapter 4: Close Call

"Hello?" Haseo said, stepping into Dr. Hikari's lab.

"Haseo, in here!" he heard Lan shout. "You gotta come see this!"

Haseo walked up to where the main computer stood, and where Lan and Yuichiro Hikari were focusing their attention towards.

"What's going on?" Haseo asked, looking at the monitor.

"That's exactly what we're trying to figure out," Dr. Hikari said. "Even I'm at a loss."

Haseo had no idea what was going on with it either. There were many strings of numbers moving across the screen in what looked to be hexadecimal format. At first, he thought someone was trying to hack into the main system, but Dr. Hikari would've prevented that by now.

"Is this what you wanted to show Lan?" Haseo asked.

"Well, no," Dr. Hikari replied. "This flashed up just a little bit ago. It looks like something's trying to get in, but the main system would've stopped it."

"Then let me check it out," Blademan said from Haseo's PET. "I can go see what's wrong."

"Yeah, good idea!" Lan agreed. "I'll go with him! You ready, Megaman?!"

"Let's do it!" he said without hesitation.

"I would say no, but you've proven yourself too many times already," Dr. Hikari said. "Just be careful, you two."

"You've got nothing to worry about," Haseo said confidently. "We'll take care of the problem."

The two boys walked up and pointed their terminals at the main system.

"Jack in, Blademan! Power up!"

"Jack in, Megaman! Power up!"

* * *

_SciLab Main System_

The Net Navi continued to leech data from the computer's cyber core, chuckling darkly.

"Heh heh heh...those SciLab fools won't even know what hit them," he said to himself.

"Think again!"

The Navi turned to see two others rush up, weapons drawn. He just laughed.

"So SciLab has sent in the infantry to help out, is that it?" he said. "Well, let's see if you can really take me."

* * *

_SciLab Comp_

Megaman and Blademan rushed over to the Cyber Core to find an odd Net Navi leeching data from the SciLab database.

"There's the problem right there!" Blademan said, drawing his swords and activating his mask.

"Then let's go get it!" Megaman said, cocking his Mega Buster.

The two ran up to the Navi, who noticed them right away. Blademan took his appearance into his mind, for he really was an odd Navi. He was human-based, with ice-blue crystalline armor and a crest on the front of his helmet. He wore a blue jumpsuit with a gold belt, and a smug expression was on his face.

"So, SciLab has sent in the infantry to help out, is that it?" he said smugly. "Well, let's see if you can really take me."

Blademan and Megaman were then stopped dead in their tracks as the Navi duplicated himself into two separate entities.

"Who are you?!" Blademan shouted.

"We are Geminiman!" the two Navis shouted in unison. The two then formed their hands into Cyber Swords and charged the two Navis.

"Blademan! Get ready!" Haseo said. "I'm sending you data now! Long Sword, Battle Chip in! Download!"

"Wide Sword, Battle Chips in! Double Download!" Lan shouted, slotting in two of his Wide Sword chips.

Megaman's arms turned into the sent Sword chips, while Blademan's swords extended in length. The two Net Battlers charged into battle, ready for anything.

"Gemini Steal!" the Navi shouted in unison.

The Geminimen disappeared from view. Megaman and Blademan skidded to a stop, looking around cautiously.

"Where are they?!" Megaman said, keeping his swords up.

"Hang on, I'll see if I can't pick up any trace of unusual data in the area," Blademan said, triggering his Scan Visor. After looking around for a few seconds, Blademan locked on to two unidentified entities flying at Megaman.

"Megaman! Behind you!" Blademan shouted.

Megaman turned and blocked both slashes from the Geminimen just in the nick of time. He then received a Mach Gun chip from Lan, firing shots at them with pinpoint accuracy.

"Gah!" one of them shouted. "Fine then! Time to step it up! Gemini Cannon!"

The Geminimen put their arms together and formed a massive cannon, training it at the two Net Navis.

"Lan! I need something else!" Megaman said.

"I have an idea," Haseo said from a window on Blademan's visor. "Lan, you have any Reflector chips?"

"Yeah, I hear you!" Lan said, pulling out the defensive chip.

"Reflector 1, Battle Chip in! Download!" they said together as they slotted the chips in.

Right as the Geminimen fired the cannon, two shields shimmered up in front of the Navis, reflecting the blast back at the opponents and nearly destroying both of them. The Geminimen hit the cyber ground, merging back into one.

Just as the two Navis were about to walk up to him and see if he was wounded, Geminiman hopped up and shouted, "You really think you can defeat me?! Time to show you what I came here for! Ultimate Cannon, download!"

"What?!" Dr. Hikari shouted. "That's the single use Battle Chip I created when Gospel invaded the SciLab Computer two years ago! I thought I'd destroyed it!"

Megaman and Blademan stepped back, realizing there was nowhere to go. The Ultimate Cannon's wide angle and range meant there was no escape. The massive cannon formed itself on Geminiman's arm and began charging.

"Lan..." Megaman said silently.

"Haseo...I failed you," Blademan whispered.

"Hub! No!" Lan shouted.

"Blademan!" Haseo cried.

The charge complete, Geminiman laughed madly and fired the massive beam. Blademan closed his eyes, waiting for his body to be deleted.

But then, right when it appeared there was no hope...

"Reflector 3, Battle Chip in! Download!"

All Blademan could hear was a sharp scream as whatever had appeared there reflected the massive blast back at Geminiman, then an explosion.

**"GEMINIMAN, DELETED."**

Blademan opened his eyes to see none other than Protoman holding a smoking shield, breathing heavily.

"Protoman?!" he shouted, awestruck.

Haseo and Lan looked to the left and lit up.

"Chaud!" Lan shouted, never happier to see his rival.

"I see you're still getting yourself into trouble," Chaud said in his usual cool tone, smiling slightly. Then he looked at Haseo. "And you. I didn't expect you to throw your Navi into danger so quickly."

"He didn't," Blademan said roughly. "I volunteered, and so did Megaman."

"That's right," Haseo said, backing up his Navi's statement. "I wouldn't have jacked him in to take care of it otherwise."

"Regardless, we prevented a great tragedy," Dr. Hikari said, trying to prevent a possible fight. "If Geminiman had figured out how to perfect that chip data, who knows how much havoc he could cause."

"We should work on restoring the system and boosting the security so nothing like this can happen again," Chaud said. "Protoman, get to it."

"On it," Protoman said. Then he looked at the other two Net Navis and said, "You two should jack out and leave this to the Officials."

Haseo glared at Protoman, then he sighed, realizing there was no other choice.

"Come on, Blademan," Haseo said. "Let's jack out."

"Roger that," Blademan said, sheathing his swords and beaming back to Haseo's PET.

"You too, Megaman," Lan said. "Jack out."

"Got it," he said, beaming back to Lan's PET.

The two boys walked out of the lab and into the elevator, getting ready to head home.

Once they were gone, Dr. Hikari looked at Chaud and said, "You know, you didn't have to be so rough on them. They were only trying to help."

"Yeah, and it almost got one of your sons deleted," Chaud said. "I understand that Lan has saved the world from annihilation on many occasions, but he needs to learn that he's not invincible."

Dr. Hikari looked back at the monitor. Then he spoke.

"Y'know, he actually talked to me about that."

"Hm?" Chaud said, looking at the Net scientist.

"One night, when I was at home, he sat down beside me and told me, 'Dad, why do I always have to be the one to save everybody?'" Dr. Hikari chuckled lightly at this.

"I honestly didn't know how to respond," he continued. "But I said, 'There comes a time when someone has to stand up for what he believes in, when no one else will. There cannot be light without darkness, just like there cannot be good without evil.' And you know what he did after I said that?"

"What?" Chaud said.

"...He cried. Buried his face into my chest and cried. I really think that it kills him to put his brother, whom he already lost once, into danger like that." Dr. Hikari looked back at Chaud and said, "Lan is a very strong and very brave young man. I think it's the belief that he can make this world a better place by keeping people out of harm's way that keeps him going. And Megaman is the same way."

Chaud looked down at the keyboard, running what Dr. Hikari had said through his head. As much as he hated to admit it, Dr. Hikari was right. Lan was always there when danger was imminent, and he always tried his best to help. But putting his brother into danger would kill someone on the inside.

"Right," Chaud said eventually. "Well, we'd better get back to work."

Dr. Hikari nodded, smiling slightly. He knew Chaud had got the point.

* * *

_SciLab Main Entrance_

Haseo and Lan walked out of the building and headed for the metroline. Before the boys were about to walk in, Haseo decided to ask him the question that had been bugging him since they left.

"Hey, Lan?" Haseo started. "When we were about to be defeated, I heard you call Megaman 'Hub'. What's the story behind that?"

Lan stopped cold and looked at Haseo. Then he said, "Well, I guess it wouldn't hurt to tell you."

Lan took a deep breath and said, "Megaman's real name is Hub Hikari, the name of my twin brother."

"Your brother...wawawait!" Haseo said, eyes wide with surprise. "Megaman is your brother?! How is that even possible?!"

"When we were little, Hub was diagnosed with HBD," Lan explained. "Before he died, my dad had been able to successfully turn his DNA into computer data and made him into a Net Navi."

"Whoa, that can happen?!" Haseo said. "That's amazing!"

"Yeah, try saying that when you're the one putting him into danger all the time," Lan said. "But he wants to help, and I'll always be there for him, as an Operator, and as his brother."

Lan pulled out his PET and entered a sequence of commands. Just then, Haseo's PET beeped. He pulled it out and saw Megaman's Navi Crest in the top right corner of his screen.

"What just happened?" Haseo asked.

"I just sent you a special function that'll let you fuse your Area Sword with the weapon of your crosses," Lan said. "It's the same thing I use with Megaman to gain new weapons. It was created specifically for me, but I think you should have it."

"Lan, I..." Haseo said, aghast. "Thanks..."

"No problem," Lan said, smiling. "Come on, let's go home."

The two boys entered the metroline and took the train back to ACDC Town.

* * *

Author's Note: Man, that was a great chapter! I mean, I think that one was the best I've ever written! Let me know what you think!

Strato Abyss signing out.


	5. Net Team

Chapter 5: Net Team

Haseo woke up to a message coming across on his PET. He put the pillow over his head and said, "Blademan, will you shut that thing off?!"

"You actually might want to read it," Blademan said. "It's from Dr. Hikari."

Haseo yawned and stretched, slowly getting out of bed and grabbing his PET. Blademan opened the e-mail and pulled up Dr. Hikari's message.

"Sorry if I woke you up, Haseo," he read. "I need you to come down to SciLab as soon as you can. Lan will also be there. I have something important for you."

"Something important, huh?" Blademan said. "Wonder what it could be?"

"Wait, there's more…" Haseo said, continuing, "Also, to thank you for your help the other day, I've attached some Battle Chip data to this message. Use it well."

Haseo expanded the chip data and slotted in a blank chip. After the download was finished, he popped it out, revealing a powerful Step Sword chip.

"Isn't that the Battle Chip that Chaud likes to use?" Blademan asked.

"Yeah, it is," Haseo said, putting the chip in his sack. "I wonder how he got it."

"Well, in any case, we should hurry up and get to SciLab," Blademan suggested. "Don't want to keep the Doctor waiting."

"Right," Haseo said, getting dressed. After telling his mother he was off to SciLab, Haseo went over to the metroline and hopped a train to SciLab, all the while thinking about what Dr. Hikari needed from him.

Once the train arrived, Haseo emerged from the metroline to see Lan sitting there, tapping his foot and looking around.

"I think he's waiting for me," Haseo said to himself. "Let's try and sneak by him."

"Heh, go for it," Blademan said enthusiastically. "He won't know what hit him!"

Haseo nodded and made his way around the main entrance, making sure he was well hidden by using shrubs, trees, even nearby people. Eventually, he made it to the SciLab entrance without being seen, and he walked in, hitching a ride on the elevator to Dr. Hikari's lab.

"Hahaha! He was totally clueless!" Haseo laughed once the door had closed.

"You could totally be a ninja," Blademan said. "I didn't know you could be that silent."

"Well, before I lived in DenTech City, I lived in End City," Haseo explained. "That was about three years ago. We were actually trained a little in the ways of the ninja aside from our Net training."

"End City?" Blademan asked. "I've never heard of that place."

"I'd have to go there sometime and show you," Haseo said. "The place is beautiful. Almost like stepping back in time."

The elevator stopped and opened, and Haseo walked into the lab, where Dr. Hikari and Chaud were waiting.

"Ah, there you are, Haseo!" Dr. Hikari said. "Where's Lan?"

"I don't know," Haseo said, giggling slightly. "I'll give him a call."

Haseo pulled out his PET and dialed up Lan's number. After a few rings, Lan answered.

"Haseo! Where are you?" Lan asked, smiling smugly. "You're kinda late!"

"I should be saying that to you, Lan," Haseo said. "I'm up here in the Lab. I don't know where you're at, but you'd better hurry.

"WHAT?!" Lan shouted. The line was dropped, and a few minutes later, Lan burst into the lab, breathing heavily and giving Haseo the evil eye. Haseo just smiled and said, "What took you so long?"

"How'd you get here without me seeing you?!" Lan shouted. "I've been waiting there forever! You couldn't have gotten past me!"

"I don't know what you're talking about, Lan," Haseo said innocently. "I got up here as soon as I got Dr. Hikari's message."

"Anyway, now that we're all here," Dr. Hikari said, grabbing the attention of the two boys. "Chaud here has a proposition for you."

Chaud stepped forward and said, "As you already know, SciLab was attacked yesterday by a mysterious Net Navi called Geminiman."

"Yeah, and we almost got our butts kicked…" Blademan said sullenly.

"Shh! Let him speak!" Haseo hissed.

"Due to this event, Dr. Hikari and I are forming a team of Net Battlers to help protect SciLab, as well as the Net, from further attack," Chaud continued. "Naturally, you two were selected first."

"Wait, but why me?" Haseo asked. "I haven't been a Net Battler for that long."

"You managed to defeat me in a Net Battle," Chaud said, his tone of voice saying that he hated the idea. "That's good enough for me."

"Wait, you beat Chaud?!" Lan shouted. "Haseo, that's awesome!"

"Eh, I just got lucky, that's all," Haseo said humbly.

"No need to be shy about it, Haseo," Dr. Hikari said. "Always be gracious of victory, even if it was just sheer dumb luck."

"Anyway, back to the subject at hand…" Chaud said. "Your first assignment is to go out and recruit more members. Strength in numbers."

"Cool! I've got the perfect place to start!" Haseo said.

"What do you have in mind?" Chaud asked.

Haseo turned to Lan and said, "Remember that girl that always hangs out at Higsby's?"

Lan's eyes grew wide with horror. "No! No way, not her! She's evil!"

"She may be crazy, but she almost beat you," Haseo replied. "She's a good battler."

"Who is 'she'?" Chaud asked again.

"Her name is Rosa Ayanami," Haseo began. "She's a Battle Chip junkie who could tell you nearly everything about all of the Battle Chips, including where they're best used. She's also one heck of a Net Battler, using strategy to win her battles. She's the one who helped me pick out my first Battle Chips."

"Then you won't mind testing her skills for me," Chaud said. "Head over to Higsby's and battle her. I'll be waiting for your report."

Haseo and Lan nodded and ran out of the lab.

* * *

_Higsby's Battle Chip Shop_

"Whoa, no way!"

A young girl, around age 13, stood at the Battle Chip display, attention focused on the many rare chips in the display. She wore a pink halter top; in the center resided the same symbol her Navi donned, which was a pink heart with devilish horns and tail. She also wore a black miniskirt, extending to just below the mid-thigh region, and pink athletic shoes. She had her silver hair tied up in a ponytail to keep it out of her azure-blue eyes.

Yes, Rosa Ayanami wasn't what you'd call your average, everyday young girl. She was different from almost every girl in her class, mostly from her personality, which conflicted with her odd style. The second was her undeniable love for Battle Chips, in which most of the girls in her class didn't like to Net Battle. Rosa, however, relished it, and was now waiting for her newest challenge, hoping it would come from Haseo Tomokari and his new Navi, Blademan.

But right now, all she wanted to do was look at the display, for she had her eyes glued to a rare Super Vulcan Mega Chip, a twelve-shot version of the Vulcan chip series.

"Yep, it just came in the other day," Naoko, the cashier, said. "It's 9800 Zennys if you want it."

"Aww…it's a little out of my price range," Rosa said sadly. "I'll have to pass on it for now."

"You wouldn't be able to handle it, anyway," said a sarcastic voice from behind her.

* * *

_Higsby's Battle Chip Shop_

Haseo watched at Rosa turned around at his fake taunt. He already knew that she wouldn't get mad at him. The two were good friends, ever since Haseo moved to ACDC Town.

"Hi, Haseo!" Rosa said happily. "Here to look at some more chips? Need my help?"

"Well, actually, I came here to challenge you to a Net Battle," Haseo said calmly. "That is, if you're not busy haggling with Naoko."

"Nah, I'm not doing anything right now," Rosa said, pulling her PET from the holster strapped to her hip. "Angel and I recently got some new chips and we want to test some new strategies."

Haseo already knew that Rosa's Navi was pretty tough on her own. Angel was a human-based Navi that shared Rosa's unique style, except in the form of a digital jumpsuit, as well as flaming red hair. Golden wings protruded from her shoulders, and she wielded a sword styled after a hypodermic needle.

The two made their way back to the Free Space, an area Higsby made for kids to hang out, trade chips, and even Net Battle.

"Jack in, Blademan! Power up!" Haseo said, pointing his PET at the Net Battle machine.

"Jack in, Angel! Power up!" Rosa said, doing the same motion.

* * *

_Higsby's Free Space_

The two Net Navis entered the Free Space battle area, drawing their blades and getting ready to fight.

"I hope you're ready for a beatdown!" Angel taunted, brandishing her needle.

"I'm ready to dish one out, if that's what you mean," Blademan retorted, activating his mask.

Just then, Higsby himself showed up, jacking in his Net Navi, Numberman.

"Higsby?" Lan said, surprised that the chip collector had arrived. "I thought you were still in Netopia looking for rare Battle Chips."

"Nah, I didn't find a thing, so I came back here," Higsby said, an unusual hint of giddiness in his voice.

"Really?" Rosa said. "'Cause your voice doesn't match your words. You made a huge discovery, didn't you?"

"Uhh…" Higsby started. "I'll tell you after this battle. I've gotta phone call to make first."

With that, Higsby ran off, leaving the two shocked kids to their battle.

"So, we gonna get this thing started or what?!" Rosa said confidently.

"Ladies first," Haseo taunted.

The two Net Navis, catching on to the competitive vibe, rushed at each other and began the battle. After a few furious sword clashes, Haseo was the one to pop in the first Battle Chip.

"Long Sword, Battle Chip in! Download!"

Blademan's swords extended in length, and he ran at Angel, who had received an Area Steal from Rosa and was now nowhere to be seen.

"Keep your guard up, Blademan!" Haseo warned.

"No one's gonna get first blood on me!" Blademan said aggressively, crossing his swords.

"Now! Lance, Battle Chip in! Download!"

Rosa reappeared, her needle changing to a massive wooden lance trained for impaling the swordsman. But just as she thrust it forward, Haseo slotted in a Reflector chip to throw it right back in her face.

"Gah! That's it!" Angel shouted angrily, her needle returning to normal. "Let's show 'em our newest toy!"

"Gotcha covered!" Rosa said, pulling a chip out of her pack. But Haseo wasn't taking any risks, plugging in a chip at nearly invisible speed.

"Step Sword, Battle Chip in! Download!"

All Angel could see was a black and blue blur as Blademan dashed forward and sliced with both swords almost instantaneously. She fell back, landing on her back.

"No! I'm not losing to you!" Rosa said. "Time to show you our custom chip attack! Angel Wing, Battle Chip in! Download!"

Angel flipped back up and spread her wings, flying at Blademan and latching onto him, damaging him as she healed herself.

"OK, so you wanna use unique chips, huh?" Haseo said, getting ready to slot in another chip. But once he looked back at the screen, his PET showed a menu he'd never seen before, labeled "Cross System". Curious, he tapped it and saw Megaman's Navi Crest appear on a drop down menu.

"Hmm…whatever," he said, tapping the symbol. Almost instantly, Blademan flashed, and his armor resembled that of Megaman's.

"Whoa! What just happened?!" Haseo shouted, surprised.

"Looks like you just activated the Cross System," Lan said matter-of-factly.

"What's that?" Haseo asked curiously.

"If you have a Navi registered as a Link Navi, you can use the Cross System to fuse with them and gain their powers," Lan explained. "With Mega Cross, you can set other Battle Chips to use as your default Buster Attack, as well as boosting up the power of shooting-based chips by 30."

"Well, then…" Haseo said, using that to his advantage. "Area Sword, Battle Chip in! Set!"

Blademan's swords glowed slightly, then he spun multiple times, attacking Angel as many times as needed to force her out of the Free Space and securing victory.

"What?!" Rosa said, aghast. "How did I lose?!"

"Well, first of all, your HP hit zero," Haseo said in a literalist tone, earning a laugh from Lan. "Second, you rely a little too much on Battle Chips."

"SO DO YOU!" she shouted.

"Well…then I guess I'm just better than you at using them," Haseo said. "But we could use your skills. See, we're putting together a team of Net Battlers to help protect the Net from evil. We could use you and your knowledge. Interested?"

"Hmm…" Rosa said, thinking for a bit.

"Laaan!"

A slam echoed from the front of the store as Maylu Sakurai burst in and hugged Lan, crying.

"Maylu! What's wrong?" Lan asked, a little surprised at her entrance.

"Someone attacked my home page!" Maylu managed to get out. "I fought as hard as I could, but he was too strong! He almost deleted Roll!"

Lan glared and looked at Haseo, who nodded.

"What did he look like?" Haseo asked.

"Well…he was kind of spiky…and blue…" Maylu said shakily, trying to describe her attacker. "He had a really cocky look on his face, too…"

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Haseo said, jacking Blademan out of the Free Space. "We've got a Navi to delete! Let's roll!"

"I'll go with you!" Rosa said, jacking Angel out. "No one attacks one of my classmates and gets away with it!"

Maylu sniffed and said, "Thanks, guys."

The kids rushed out of the shop and headed over to Maylu's house for their next battle.

* * *

Author's Note: Yet another forgotten Robot Master has been reincarnated as a Net Navi. I'll leave you readers to guess who it is. And those who guess Sonic are gonna get a visit from the Terror of Death himself.

Strato Abyss signing out.


	6. A Sharp Conflict

Chapter 6: A Sharp Conflict

Haseo and the others ran to Maylu's house, not wasting any time in jacking into her PC. Once they did, they knew something was wrong.

Maylu's entire homepage was littered with massive spikes, and some had popped holes in the cyber ground, giving entrance to the void. Megaman, Blademan and Angel were careful to avoid the holes as they made their way deeper into Maylu's page.

"Oh, goody! More meat!" said a cocky voice from far away, causing Blademan and Megaman to draw their weapons.

"Who are you?!" Blademan shouted. "Show yourself!"

A large blue Navi landed in front of the group, causing the two warriors to jump back. He had a bulky frame, which didn't explain his acrobatic movement, and three large spikes on his forehead.

"I am Needleman!" he announced. "And I came here to sharpen the place up a bit!"

Haseo could swear he heard crickets as Needleman cracked that bad joke. Lan just shook his head.

"It's funny!" Needleman said. "It's OK to laugh!"

"No, it's really not," Blademan said. "Anyway, we're here to ask you to leave."

"And you thought I would leave just because you asked?!" Needleman laughed. "Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't realize this place was important to you!"

"OK," Blademan said, activating his mask. "Then I have no choice to delete you."

"Ooh, I'm sooo scared!" Needleman said with dry sarcasm. "Bring it on!"

"Blademan…let me handle him," Angel said, stepping forward. "I need to show you exactly what we can do."

Angel drew her needle sword and got into a battle stance.

"Huh…?" Needleman said, looking at Angel, then her sword. "Is that…? NO! You can't make me!"

"What?" Angel said, puzzled.

"I already had my vaccinations!" Needleman shouted, frightened and backing up. "I'm NOT going through that again!"

Blademan was almost as curious as Angel was. He was looking around for an answer, then he found it. He nearly busted up, laughing.

"Angel!" Blademan shouted. "He's afraid of needles! He's afraid of your sword!"

Angel looked at her needle sword, then smiled devilishly. Needleman's face shrunk, and he said, "Uh, oh," before running away.

"You can't escape me!" Angel said, spreading her wings and taking flight like a hawk looking for its prey. Needleman looked up and screamed again, running as fast as he could.

"Let's have some fun," Rosa said. "Lance, Battle Chip in! Download!"

Angel's sword turned into a wooden lance, and she swooped down, nearly impaling him on it, had he not dodged as fast as he could.

"Stay away from me!" Needleman said, drawing an arm cannon. "Needle Cannon!"

Needleman fired a huge barrage of needles from his cannon, striking Angel's wings and causing her to spiral out of control.

"Aah! Mayday! Mayday!" Angel said, falling towards the ground. "I'm hit!"

Blademan saw the black and pink Navi falling from the sky, and he wasted no time in dashing in her direction, jumping into the air and catching her before she hit the ground.

As they landed, Angel looked at her hero with love-struck eyes, saying "Nice save."

Blademan scowled and put Angel back on the ground, putting up his mask again and running at Needleman, who had recovered and was now firing his Needle Cannon in Blademan's direction.

"Haseo! Let's light him up!" Blademan said, narrowly blocking the pointy deluge with his swords.

"Gotcha covered!" Haseo said, slotting in two chips. "One crispy Navi, comin' up!"

* * *

_Yai Ayanokoji's Mansion_

Yai Ayanokoji continued to sit boredly in her room, sipping her tea. She had no idea that a massive battle was being fought over at Maylu's house.

"Miss Yai, you seem bored," her Navi, Glyde, said. "Perhaps a little time on the Net could cheer you up?"

"Actually, could you call Higsby and see if there's any rare chips he'd be willing to part with?" Yai asked.

"Very well," Glyde sighed. "Not that you need them…"

Being part of a million-Zenny family, Yai had more money than any kid in ACDC Town. She also had a big collection of rare Battle Chips, including the rare Django Mega Chip. Lan had been dying to get it off of her because of its Cross System compatibility. Uniting it to your Navi through the Cross System menu allowed them to unlock the Sol Cross, a powerful Cross that used the power of sunlight to blind and devastate anyone who stood in your way.

Just then, as if right on cue, Yai received a message from Higsby. She picked up her PET and opened the e-mail. As she read through it, her face slowly turned into one of anger.

"Is something wrong, Miss Yai?" Glyde said nervously.

"Higsby just sent me an e-mail that says he found a Django chip lying on the side of the road during his vacation to Netopia," Yai said angrily. "I paid 200,000 Zennys for mine!"

Yai stormed over to her computer and said, "Jack in, Glyde! Power up!"

Glyde found himself beaming into Yai's home page, where she said, "Go to Maylu's page! I need to blow off some steam!"

"Yes, my lady," Glyde said obediently, walking towards the access point to Net City.

* * *

_Maylu's HP_

"Area Steal, Cannon, Battle Chips in! Download!"

Blademan teleported behind the blue Navi and fired the Cannon, dealing some pretty heavy damage with such a small attack.

"Gaah! No fair!" Needleman shouted, turning around and training his cannon on Blademan.

"Megaman! Now!" Blademan shouted.

Megaman dashed forward as Lan sent him a Step Sword chip, reappearing behind Needleman and slicing his back sending him sprawling forward.

"There's TWO of you?!" Needleman shouted. "How about I point out that both of you need to go?! Needle Ram!"

The two Navis dove out of the way as Needleman flew at them. Blademan recovered and ran at him as he landed, slicing with both swords and knocking him back to Megaman, who had been sent a Hi Cannon chip, and was blasted into deletion.

"Yeah! That's how it's done!" Blademan shouted, spinning his swords and sheathing them.

"But…I didn't fire," Megaman said.

Blademan looked at the confused blue Navi, and sure enough, there was no smoke rolling out of the Hi Cannon's barrel.

"Then if it wasn't you…who was it who dealt the finishing blow?" Haseo asked curiously.

"It was me," said a voice from Maylu's access portal.

Megaman looked behind Blademan to see a tall Navi clad in bronze armor walk up from the access portal, his Mega Cannon arm turning back to normal. He had a very regal appearance to him, what with his straight posture and his sharp wings protruding from his back.

"Glyde, is that you?" Megaman said in surprise, his arm also turning back to normal. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, I was sent here by Miss Yai to engage young Miss Maylu in a Net Battle," Glyde explained. "When I saw that you were in the midst of a battle, Miss Yai sent me in to deal the finishing blow."

"Well, that was quite the attack," Blademan complimented. "Not bad for a Navi who usually doesn't get his hands dirty."

"Blademan…" Haseo warned.

"Haseo? Are you over at Maylu's right now?" he heard Yai ask.

"Uh, yeah," Haseo responded. "Why?"

"Well, I heard you have a chip that you can't get anywhere else," she said.

"What? Oh, you mean my Area Sword?" he said.

"Yes, that's it," Yai said. "I want it. Name your price."

Haseo's jaw practically dropped to the floor. Then he composed himself and said, "How high are you willing to go?"

Blademan looked at Haseo through a window on his visor. "You can't! That's our unique chip!"

"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing," Haseo said calmly. "I don't know if I can just sell it to you…it IS a unique chip after all."

"OK, then how about a trade?" Yai asked. Haseo knew she was determined to get that chip.

"What do you have to offer?" Haseo said.

A short pause ensued, then he heard Yai groan. Glyde already knew what she was going to do.

"Are you sure, Miss Yai?" Glyde asked.

"…send him the data," she said eventually.

Haseo got a prompt on his PET that showed a picture of a chip that made his jaw drop again, as well as those who were around him.

"Whoa! Is that a-"

"Yes," Yai said. "It's the Django chip. It's yours if you want to trade for it."

Haseo wasted no time in sending the chip's data over to Yai. Haseo popped in the Area Sword's chip, and soon enough, the data was exchanged, and he got his extremely rare chip.

"Pleasure doing business with you," Haseo said with a smile on his face.

"And with you," Yai said.

The link was cut, and Haseo was left admiring his new chip. Glyde eventually jacked out, and everyone else left as well, with Rosa and Angel being a new member of the team.

"You'll need to head to SciLab and talk to Chaud to get your member status," Haseo explained. "I'm heading home. Lan, will you escort her to SciLab?"

Lan looked at Haseo like he was nuts.

"C'mon, dude," Haseo scowled. "It's not that bad. She won't bite."

Lan looked at Rosa, who was smiling innocently and batting her eyes. Haseo laughed and started on his way home. Almost halfway through, Blademan, who was silent and angry the entire time, finally spoke.

"I can't believe you traded away our unique chip," he grumbled.

"I told you I knew what I was doing," Haseo said in response. "Have a little faith in your partner, huh?"

"What faith?!" Blademan shouted. "Out of all of our Battle Chips, Area Sword was our most powerful!"

"You think I wasn't prepared?!" Haseo yelled back. "You think I didn't have a backup plan?!"

This caused Blademan to stop. "Backup plan?"

"You think I'm dumb enough to give away my first chip?" Haseo said. By this time, they were at Haseo's house, and Haseo walked upstairs and fired up his computer.

"So…what is this backup plan of yours?" Blademan asked curiously.

Haseo smiled and pulled up the data for Area Sword, attaching it to an e-mail and sending it to is PET. Blademan opened the message and expanded the data, like he was programmed to do, and Haseo popped in a lank chip, creating a shiny new Area Sword Battle Chip.

"OK, so you had the data saved on another file," Blademan said. "Is that it? She could still use our chip in battle."

"That's where the other part of my plan comes in," Haseo said. "You see, our PET has a special ID number called a MAC Address. I programmed Area Sword to only activate if it was plugged into our PET."

"Wait, so that means…" Blademan said. "As soon as Yai slots it in, she can't use it and thinks it's a dud!"

"Exactly," Haseo said. "Which means we'll still be the only ones able to use it."

"OK!" Blademan said happily. "Sorry for doubting you."

"Nah, don't sweat it," Haseo said, looking into his Navi's eyes. "I would be mad too."

"By the way, what's so special about that chip you got from Yai?" Blademan asked.

"Well, first off, it's incredibly rare," Haseo explained. "Only ten of them were made. Secondly, when used with the Cross System, it initiates a Sol Cross form that increases your Navi's power levels by a huge amount."

"So, I'll be over 9,000 for sure?" Blademan said, smirking.

"If you want to put it that way, then sure," Haseo said dryly. "Anyway, I know that it gets rid of any element-based weaknesses, and boosts up your HP rating, as well as major defenses. It also gives you the power of sunlight to use in battle."

"Sounds awesome," Blademan said. "We should test it sometime."

Just then, a message came across on Haseo's PET from Chaud. Haseo opened the message and read it aloud.

"Haseo, we need you over in Net City now," he read. "There is a strange Navi attacking the city's cyber core. Protoman and Megaman have already been sent over there. Head over and render assistance."

"Looks like we'll be getting a chance already," Blademan said.

"Well then, what are we waiting for?" Haseo said confidently, pointing his PET at his machine. "Jack in, Blademan! Power up!"

* * *

Author's Note: There's another chapter complete. You know, when I found out Needleman was afraid of needles, I nearly lost my lunch, I was laughing so hard.

Strato Abyss signing out.


	7. Face the World (Three?)

Chapter 7: Face the World (Three?)

Haseo had jacked Blademan into his PC and sent him on the road to Net City, where the disturbance was reported. He ran up to the main square, where the building that held the town's cyber core was located, to find the Navi who was making the town go haywire. He looked like an upgraded construction Navi, humanoid, with a large visor that attached to the front of his helmet. He had this visor over his face as he used his drill arms to break through the building to get through to the cyber core.

"Hey! You, with the face!" Blademan shouted at the Navi, although everyone who was still hanging around looked at him attentively. The Navi stopped drilling and retracted his visor, looking down at Blademan.

"You talkin' to me?" he said, jumping off of the building and landing directly in front of Blademan, causing him to jump back.

"Who are you?" Blademan interrogated.

"The name's Crashman!" the Navi said.

"Why are you trying to destroy the cyber core?" Blademan asked.

"What business is it of yours?" Crashman retaliated. "You should just go home before I have to destroy you."

"You've made three mistakes when you decided to attack the city," Blademan said, activating his mask and drawing his swords. "You think no one's watching, you think you're smart enough to escape, and worst of all, you think no one cares."

"And what are you gonna do about it?!" Crashman shouted, putting up his arms.

"I'm gonna destroy you, right here, right now!" Blademan shouted.

"You mean, WE'RE gonna destroy him," said a voice from behind him.

Blademan turned around to see none other than Megaman and Protoman standing behind him, weapons drawn.

"'Bout time you guys showed up!" Haseo said. "What kept you?"

"A virus horde near our home pages," Megaman said. "The viruses were pretty tough, so Protoman had to drop by and give me a hand. Or a sword, rather."

Protoman grunted at Megaman's pun. Blademan just shook his head and turned around to see Crashman charging, his drills spinning. Blademan deflected them with his swords and jumped back farther, while Megaman shot at him and Protoman dashed in for a close range assault.

"You're not getting me that easily!" Crashman shouted. "Crash Bomber!"

Crashman fired off a flurry of drill-like bombs at the two Navis, clinging to them before exploding and dealing some incredible damage. Megaman and Protoman flew back, skidding across the ground and stopping in front of Blademan.

"Whoa! You guys alright?!" Blademan said, kneeling down.

"Urrgh…" Protoman said, standing up. "That Navi's pretty tough…how did he manage to attack like that?"

"He must have a Break-based weapon," Haseo said, referring to chip type matchups. Break-based attacks were usually strong against Sword-based Navis, which means Blademan would be at a disadvantage as well.

"We can't beat him in this state," Megaman said. "We need reinforcements."

"I'll call Rosa and see if she can't render assistance," Haseo said, pulling up his phone and dialing her number.

However, before he could finish, a gold-clad Navi flew in out of nowhere and flying-kicked Crashman, sending him flying back to the building. She landed, flipping her light brown hair back behind her.

"What the…?" Protoman said.

"Who is that?" Megaman said. "She…kinda looks familiar…"

The Navi looked back at the two Navis and said, "Are you OK? You're not hurt, are you?"

"We're fine," Megaman said. "Thanks."

The Navis heard a rustling near the building, and they looked over in that direction to see Crashman getting back up. Megaman and Protoman were ready to continue fighting, but the Navi held an arm out and said, "You don't need to fight in your condition. I'll take care of this." Then she looked back at Blademan.

"You…you haven't taken any damage, have you?" she asked.

"Uh…no," he said.

"Then come with me," she said. "You can provide support."

"Oh, we can do more than that," Haseo said. "Follow her, Blademan, and let's finish this!"

"You got it!" Blademan said, walking with the gold Navi.

As they were walking up to a damaged Crashman, Blademan said, "Can I get the name of the Navi I'm fighting beside?"

There was a short pause, then she said, "Iris."

"Iris…beautiful name," Blademan said.

"Enough talking," Iris said. "We're here."

Crashman was still struggling to get up as the two Navis stepped up to him. He saw them and immediately got a burst of energy, flipping up and off the wall, landing behind them.

"I'm not that easy to be beaten!" Crashman shouted. "You're gonna have to try harder if you wanna beat me, lady!"

Iris and Blademan got into a battle stance. The two Navis and Crashman faced each other aggressively before making their moves.

"Wide Sword!" Blademan shouted, dashing in.

"Flash Buster!" Iris shouted, firing a beam of light from her hand.

Crashman fired off his Crash Bombs again, but Blademan's swords cut through those pretty quickly. Iris' attack hit Crashman directly, causing him to fly back again and skid to a stop at least 20 feet away.

"Aw, yeah!" Blademan shouted cockily.

"We're not done yet, Blademan!" Haseo warned. "Here he comes!"

Just as Haseo said, Crashman was charging again, fury in his eyes. Blademan dodged, but Iris wasn't fast enough, and she was caught directly by Crashman's Drill Arm. Iris fell back and hit the ground, barely moving.

"Iris!" Blademan shouted.

Just as Crashman was about to finish her, Haseo made his move.

"Django, Mega Chip in! Unite! Initiate Sol Cross!"

Blademan's body flashed brilliantly as the chip's power was merging with his program matrix. Crashman turned around to see where the huge burst of light came from, and was instantly blinded as the power of the sun filled Blademan's body.

Once the fusion was complete, Blademan's armor had completely changed. He now had a gold and orange color scheme with a phoenix-like design. His swords were now made of solar energy, which would burn through anything it touched. He also sported a red scarf that flowed violently behind him.

"What the…what is that?!" Crashman shouted, stepping back and tripping over Iris, who was still unconscious. Even Megaman and Protoman was astounded.

"Haseo just activated the Sol Cross!" Megaman said in awe.

"Hmph…not bad," Protoman said calmly.

"Prepare to face the light, Crashman!" Haseo shouted. "Solar Blade, Special Chip in! Download!"

Haseo triggered the special data that merged with Blademan's buster attack, and Blademan started slashing the air with his swords, creating multiple slash-like rays of light. After at least 10 slashes, he thrust his sword forward, sending the light blades at Crashman.

"Oh…" Crashman said before getting sliced by the multiple blades of light and exploding into deletion.

Blademan's shiny new armor disappeared, returning him to his normal self. He spun his swords, sheathed them, and retracted his mask, walking up to Iris.

"Are you OK?" he said, holding out a hand.

Iris looked up at him and took his hand. Blademan pulled her up, and she brushed herself off.

"I'm fine…" she said silently.

"Iris! I almost lost your signal!" said a voice from Iris' helmet, whom Haseo and Blademan assumed to be Iris' operator.

"I'm OK," she said. "I'm only damaged slightly."

"Jack out, Iris, so I can repair you," said the voice. "And Blademan…thank you."

"Uh, no problem," Blademan said, puzzled.

Iris nodded and waved goodbye to the other Navis before returning to her operator. Megaman and Protoman stepped up beside Blademan.

"Who was she?" Megaman asked.

"I don't know," Blademan responded. "But she said her name was Iris."

"Iris?" Haseo heard Lan say. "But…it can't be…"

"I don't believe it either," Protoman said. "I thought she was deleted along with Colonel while fighting the Cybeasts."

"Hey! Anyone wanna fill me in?" Blademan said. "I don't know what you guys are talking about."

"Well, I knew a girl called Iris, who I thought was human, but turned out to be a Net Navi occupying a CopyBot," Lan explained. "She and Colonel were siblings, created by Dr. Wily to run the Cybeasts when he'd gotten them under his control. When they fused with each other, they deleted the Cybeasts, but were deleted in the process."

"In case you didn't know, Cybeasts are extremely powerful A.I. beings who caused a great tragedy in the Net when it was first being made," Protoman joined in. "They were sent to the Underground area of Cyber City's Net until they were revived."

"Uh…maybe I'll just look it up," Haseo said, confused.

"Anyway, I'll get to work on repairing the damage," Protoman said. "You two should return to your PETs until the work is done."

"I'm afraid that will have to wait, Protoman," Chaud said.

"What?" Protoman said, looking at his operator. "Why do you say that?"

"Because I have something more important standing in front of me," Chaud said.

Chaud's window panned over to someone that made Lan and Megaman gasp in unison.

"Dr. Wily?!" Lan shouted.

"Hello, Lan, Hub," he said. "It's been a while, hasn't it?"

"What are you doing here?!" Megaman shouted.

"I've come to make a proposition," Wily said. "I need you and Haseo to come down to SciLab. Don't worry, it's not a trap. I have Chaud and Yuichiro standing in front of me."

"What makes you think I trust you?!" Lan said aggressively.

"Lan, I trust him," Dr. Hikari said through Chaud's window. "Now, please, come over to SciLab."

"I'll be over there ASAP, Dr. Hikari," Haseo said. "Blademan, jack out."

"Roger that," Blademan said, beaming back to Haseo's PET.

* * *

_SciLab 2F_

Haseo and Lan had showed up at SciLab, Lan STILL not believing that Wily could be trusted. However, Chaud and Dr. Hikari had talked him into it, and so, he and Haseo walked into Dr. Hikari's lab, where the two scientists and Chaud were waiting.

"Hello, Lan," Dr. Wily said, holding out a hand. Lan just glared at him. Dr. Wily nodded and retracted his hand.

"Look, I understand why you hate me," Dr. Wily said. "I've caused you and your loved ones a lot of harm, and for that, I'm sorry. But I'm here to make amends, and to start that, I requested to join your team of peace keepers."

"You want to fight beside us?" Haseo asked, cocking an eyebrow. "Do you even have a Net Navi?"

"Even if I didn't, I could help in more ways than just fighting," Dr. Wily said.

"Dr. Wily is a Net specialist," Dr. Hikari said. "He actually worked with my father, Tadashi Hikari."

"Yeah, I guess so," Haseo said. "But, even still, do you have a Navi?"

"As a matter of fact, I do," Dr. Wily said, smiling. "Lan, you of all people will enjoy this. Come on out!"

Haseo cocked an eyebrow as a girl stepped out from a corner. She had light brown hair that flowed down her back, and she wore a purple and lavender dress and dark blue boots. In her hair resided two clips shaped like butterflies.

"What?! No way…Iris?!" Lan shouted, aghast.

"Hello, Lan," Iris said, smiling. "It's been a while, hasn't it?"

"Wait, that's Iris?" Haseo said, remembering the Navi clad in gold armor that helped them defeat Crashman. "But…she looks like a normal human girl to me."

"That's because she's in a device of my own creation called a 'CopyBot'," Dr. Wily explained. "Here, I'll show you, since you're probably the only one here who hasn't seen one. Iris, Transfer out."

Iris nodded, and her appearance dissipated into a yellow-colored mannequin-like object.

"Now, Haseo," Dr. Wily said, "On their own, CopyBots can't do anything. But, by transferring a Net Navi into the CopyBot's CPU, it takes on the appearance of that Navi, and allows the Navi to work in the real world."

"No way! That can happen?!" Haseo said, astounded.

"Yes. Why don't you give it a try?" Dr. Wily said, smiling and motioning him to the CopyBot.

Haseo nodded and stepped nervously up to the CopyBot, pulling out his PET and saying, "Let's hope this works…Blademan, Transfer!"

Blademan exited the PET, going into the CopyBot. After a few seconds, the CopyBot transformed to reveal the black and blue Navi, as real as can be. Haseo was absolutely beside himself.

"I-I don't believe it…!" Haseo said, surprise in his eyes. "Blademan…you're actually here…!"

Blademan opened his eyes to see his operator, in the flesh, outside of a screen. Even he was giddy.

"Haseo…! It's…it's like a dream!" Blademan said. "I knew you wanted me to be a reality, but I never thought it would actually happen!"

"Yeah, me neither," Haseo replied.

"Blademan won't be able to download Battle Chips, but he can still use his default weapon," Dr. Wily said. "He will also have the strength of an average adult human."

"Hey, as long as I can still use these babies, I'll be fine," Blademan said confidently, drawing the swords from his back and spinning them.

"If you want, you can use that CopyBot for as long as you want," Dr. Wily said, smiling.

"Seriously?! I can have it?!" Haseo shouted.

"Sure, it's yours," Dr. Wily said. "I have many like it."

"Th-that's awesome! Thanks!" Haseo said happily.

"But remember, the CopyBot has a limited amount of energy," Dr. Wily warned. "It won't last longer than 24 hours. But don't worry, I'll send you home with the charging mechanism."

"Cool," Haseo said.

"Now, back to the situation at hand…" Dr. Wily said, looking at Chaud. "I need your permission, Eugene, to join the team, correct?"

Haseo nearly busted up, laughing. "Your name is Eugene?"

Lan, however, couldn't hold it in, and he laughed loudly, knowing that no one called him Eugene except his father. Chaud just glowered at both of them.

"It's Chaud," he said roughly. "And yes, you do need my permission to enter."

"And? What's your decision?" Dr. Wily asked.

"Normally, I'd be against it," Chaud said. "But I see this as a chance to redeem yourself, Dr. Wily. You can join, but if you even look toward evil, I'll have no hesitation to bring you down. Are we clear?"

"Transparently," Dr. Wily agreed.

"Then welcome to the team," Chaud said, shaking Dr. Wily's hand. "Now, go home and get some rest." He turned to Lan and Haseo and said, "That goes for you two as well."

"Yes SIR!" Haseo mocked, saluting Chaud. Chaud just shook his head as the two boys and the Net Navi walked out, after Dr. Wily gave Haseo the charging dock, that is.

* * *

Author's Note: The former evil doctor, as well as the antagonist for many of the Megaman games, has finally found his good side. And Haseo now has a CopyBot, so he and Blademan can do things in the real world. A NetOp's only dream…

Anyway, please read and review. Oh, and to those who guessed right on my last battle (and the one who refreshed my memory), kudos. And I nearly forgot that Needleman had made his appearance already, so thanks for enlightening me.

Strato Abyss signing out.


	8. Catching Up

Chapter 8: Catching Up

Three months had passed since the attack on Net City's cyber core, and there have been no more disturbances. Haseo was glad about this, since it meant less conflict, and now, he was on a train to his hometown, End City, where Chaud had sent him to check out the Net and see if there were any problems.

"Wow…I'm finally returning after three years," he said, not wanting to sit there any longer. "I can't believe it! I'm so excited!"

"Yeah, you've said the same thing for three hours," Blademan said, annoyed. "I think some of the people on the train are starting to get mad."

Haseo looked around, and sure enough, some were looking at him with the evil eye, and some had gotten noise-cancelling headphones from their bags and put them on.

"Sorry, I just haven't been in End City since third grade," Haseo said. "My friends would probably die from excitement when they see me."

"You had friends back then?" Blademan joked, gaining an evil eye from his operator.

"Yeah, we had our own little circle," Haseo said. "Toma, Kaworu, Atoli…I wonder how they're doing?"

Haseo didn't have to wait long, however, for when he pulled into the station and exited the train, one of his friends ran up to meet him. This was Kaworu Hitsugaya, a black-haired boy with piercing green eyes. He wore a blue jacket with a white T-shirt underneath and blue jeans, with blue and black sneakers. Kaworu always liked to look like the athletic type, though he never tried out for any sports.

"Haseo Tomokari!" Kaworu shouted as he walked up. "It's been three years, man! What's going on?!"

"Haha, what's up, Kaworu?" Haseo laughed, hi-fiving his best friend. He and Kaworu had known each other since they were in kindergarten.

"Ah, you know, same old thing," Kaworu said, shrugging his shoulders. "Not much really changed when you left. Although, I did get a new Net Navi…"

"Huh? What happened to Hawkman?" Haseo asked.

"It was kind of an accident," Kaworu said, his smile turning into a frown. "I was showing the class how to execute a Giga-class attack, and some sort of dark energy from the chip I plugged in caused him to self-delete."

"It wasn't a Dark Chip, was it?" Haseo asked.

Haseo knew all about the Dark Chip market. Dark Chips were Battle Chips that could destroy a regular Navi in one shot. However, it tainted the hearts of any Navi who used it, and some of them who couldn't handle its power usually self-deleted.

"Uh…it did have this creepy vibe to it…" Kaworu said, reaching in his pocket and pulling out a slightly burnt chip with a purple tint.

"Man, didn't anyone tell you to stay away from Dark Chips?!" Haseo said. "They're dangerous!"

"I didn't know!" Kaworu said. "The guy I got it from said it was an instant Program Advance! I couldn't pass that up!"

"Ugh…well, it's in the past now," Haseo sighed. "Who's the new Navi?"

"I'll show you if you challenge me to a Net Battle!" Kaworu said, his usual cocky attitude showing through. "I know you have a Net Navi now, 'cause I can see your PET."

Haseo nodded, pulling out his PET. "I'll meet you at the square, then."

Haseo and Kaworu ran over to the town square, which had its own Net Battle machine. That made the square the place to go if you were looking to settle your differences in a battle.

"OK, you sure you're ready, Kaworu?" Haseo teased.

"Yeah, I should be asking you that," Kaworu said, smirking.

The combatants pointed their PETs at the Net Battle machine.

"Jack in, Blademan! Power up!"

"Jack in, Ballade! Power up!"

The two Navis were sent into the Cyberworld, and Blademan was left facing a cobalt blue Navi. This Navi was human based and heavily armed, with chest and shoulder armor and heavy duty gauntlets and greaves. On his helmet was a bronze crest, which poked out from a white stripe that extended to the back of the helmet.

"So, you're my next challenge, eh?" the Navi said cockily. "Hope you're ready to get wrecked!"

"Let's see what ya got, then," Blademan said, returning the cocky vibe and drawing his swords and activating his mask.

"Nice!" Haseo said. "He looks like he's heavily customized. Who did his customizations?"

"I did," Kaworu said proudly. "Ballade was the result of years of actually studying. Pretty cool, huh?"

"You made him?" Haseo said leerily. "Well, Blademan was my project, too. Let's see who the better programmer is, huh?"

"You're on!" Kaworu said, slotting in a Battle Chip. "Hi Cannon, Battle Chip in! Download!"

Ballade's arm turned into the massive blue cannon, and he fired off a high-powered shot. But Haseo had other ideas.

"Area Steal, Wide Sword, Battle Chips in! Download!"

Blademan disappeared just as the blast was about to hit him, and he reappeared behind Ballade, slicing him with his swords. Ballade screamed and stumbled forward, whirling around with a cocky smile on his face.

"Yeah! Nice shot, buddy!" Ballade said. "But I'm not finished yet!"

Ballade ran straight up to Blademan, a Buster arm drawn, and shouted, "Ballade Cracker!" before launching a high-powered bomb right at Blademan's torso, exploding and sending them both flying. Blademan had taken serious damage, and was struggling to get up.

"Blademan! Are you OK?!" Haseo shouted.

"Urgh…I'm OK," Blademan responded, standing up slowly. Ballade was already up, however, and was rushing up with a Cyber Sword on his arm.

"Let's show 'em what happens when you mess with us!" Haseo shouted, triggering the Cross System and plugging in a chip. "Django, Mega Chip in, Unite! Initiate Sol Cross!"

Ballade instantly stopped as Blademan's body exploded with sunlight, transforming into Sol Cross Blademan. Ballade looked at the new transformation with an "oh crap" look on his face.

"Solar Blade, Cross Data in! Download!" Haseo shouted, plugging in the Area Sword chip and triggering his gift from Lan. Blademan sliced the air with his solar-charged blades and sent the blades of light flying at Ballade. Ballade took the full brunt of the attack and was forced out of the Net Battle machine.

"Aw, what?!" Kaworu whined. "That wasn't even fair, man! How'd you do that?!"

Haseo smirked and said, "Skill, and lots of it."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Blademan scoffed, returning to his normal form. "If it weren't for my power, you'd be nothing."

"You forget that our strength lies in our synergy," Haseo countered.

"Either way, it was fun!" Kaworu said, walking over to Haseo. "Thanks for the battle."

"No problem," Haseo said. "Hey, by the way, where's Toma and Atoli?"

"Toma's off in Netopia on vacation with his parents," Kaworu said. "But Atoli should be somewhere around here. She's still the best Net Battler in the school, by the way."

Atoli Kuramiya was probably the smartest girl in End City, and her battle skills were a force to be reckoned with. Haseo hadn't seen the blonde-headed girl for a while, and he hoped that she would be somewhere nearby.

Almost as if the heavens heard his wish, he heard a sharp voice pierce his eardrums from across the square.

"Haseo Tomokari!"

Haseo turned around to see a girl with short blonde hair and blue eyes storm up to him. She wore her usual attire: a white dress with the skirt a little above mid-thigh, and white stockings that nearly covered that distance, going exactly to mid-thigh, and ended with black shoes. She wore her Battle Chip sack on her left hip, and a white and blue Link PET in a holster on her right. She also wore her angry expression, which scared the crap out of both Haseo and Kaworu, for they both knew how bad Atoli could be.

"Three years!" she continued, walking right up to him and giving him a slight shove. "It's been three years and you never even called!"

"It's great to see you too, Atoli," Haseo said calmly. He knew that Atoli could never be mad at him long. "It's good to see nothing's changed."

Atoli continued to glare at the young Net Battler, then eventually caved and hugged her friend.

"It's great to finally see you after all these years!" Atoli said cheerfully. "How have you been?"

"Pretty good," Haseo said. "ACDC Town's not all that bad, and I stomped Kaworu's sorry butt in a Net Battle."

"You got lucky…" Kaworu said, trying to act cool.

"Oh, so you finally have a Net Navi!" Atoli said. "That's wonderful!"

"Yeah," Haseo said. "How's Lyria?"

"She's great!" Atoli said, pulling out her PET. "She just went through a structure upgrade that totally changed her appearance!"

Haseo pulled out his PET to see a blue mermaid-like Navi in his window. Lyria was much more beautiful than he remembered, with flowing green hair and deep blue eyes. Her figure was more defined, and she had a weapon that could convert from a harp (which used to be her default weapon; used for lulling her enemies into a trance) to a trident.

"Hey, Lyria," Haseo greeted the mythical Navi. "How goes it?"

"Hi, Haseo!" Lyria said happily, seeing who it was. "I feel amazing! That new structure upgrade made me feel on top of the world!"

"Then you and Atoli wouldn't mind facing me in a Net Battle, would you?" Haseo said, looking at Atoli and smirking.

"You sure you want to take me on?" Atoli said, cocking an eyebrow and smiling. "Lyria and I are no stuffed shirt, you realize that, right?"

"Neither are Blademan and me," Haseo countered. "We just got through kicking the crap out of Kaworu, we can put one more win up on the board easily."

"Then let's go!" Atoli said, stepping to the other terminal. "Jack in, Lyria! Power up!"

The mermaid Navi beamed into the battlefield, where Blademan was already in a battle stance with his mask up.

"So you're Blademan, am I right?" Lyria asked.

"I am," Blademan responded. "And you must be Lyria."

"I am," Lyria said. She turned her harp staff into a trident and said, "Let's go."

"Ladies first," Blademan said.

"Aw, you're Navi's really sweet," Atoli said. "Too bad I'll have to defeat him! Wide Shot 2, Battle Chip in! Download!"

Lyria swept her trident in a horizontal fashion and sent a wave of water at Blademan, who dodged it easily by jumping over it. Haseo knew that Lyria was an Aqua-based Navi, but he had no Elec-based chips. All he could do was hit hard and fast; which he was good at.

"Area Steal, Long Sword, Battle Chips in! Download!"

Blademan teleported behind Lyria and sliced with his sword, but Lyria blocked it easily with her trident. The two were now in a battle of strength, pushing against each other.

"I'm not that easy!" Lyria shouted.

"Hey, you missed one," Blademan said, smiling beneath his mask.

"Huh?" Lyria said, confused.

Blademan swung his other sword, catching Lyria in the torso. She lost her traction and landed on her rear, since she had a fish tail.

"OK…now let's see how well you fight in water!" Atoli said confidently. "Aqua Seed, Battle Chip in! Download!"

Lyria produced a blue capsule from her arm, and she lobbed it onto the field, causing the entire battlefield to be covered in water. Blademan was trying to stay afloat as best as he could, but he wasn't the best swimmer. Lyria, however, wasn't as crippled in water, for she was underwater and healing HP.

"No! We have to find a way to attack!" Blademan said.

"Not this time!" Atoli said. "Wave Pit, Battle Chip in! Download!"

Lyria rose up from the surface and sent a huge tsunami rolling at Blademan. Haseo barely had enough time to plug in a Reflector 1 chip to block the attack, and Lyria dodged the shockwave by diving back underwater.

"Give up yet, Haseo?" Atoli said, smiling victoriously.

"You haven't beaten me yet!" Haseo said, smiling back. "I've still got my trump chip!"

"Ah, crap," Kaworu said. "Atoli, you're screwed."

"What do you mean?" Atoli said, looking at Kaworu.

"Django, Mega Chip in! Unite!" Haseo shouted, slotting in the Crossover chip. "Initiate Sol Cross!"

Blademan exploded in sunlight again as the cross took effect, blinding both Lyria and her operator. Soon enough, the transformation was complete, and now a massive sun was beating down on the water, causing it to evaporate.

"What?! How is that even possible?!" Atoli shouted, aghast.

"Time to fry this fish!" Haseo shouted, slotting in his signature chip. "Solar Blade, Cross Data in! Download!"

The water was now at a level that Blademan could stand in, and he sliced the air with his swords, sending blades of sunlight at the mermaid Navi, who screamed as the light burned her skin. She eventually was forced out of the battlefield, much out of Atoli's despair.

"What…?! No!" Atoli said as Lyria was sent back to her PET. "No! How could I LOSE?!"

"Aw, yeah!" Haseo said, striking a victory pose. "The sea has been conquered!"

"That's your idea of a victory catchphrase?" Blademan said, facepalming. "Please."

"Oh, like you could do better," Haseo scoffed. "What a killjoy."

"Ugh, that's pretty crummy," Atoli said. "But, you win fair and square. Here, this is a gift from me."

Atoli tapped a few buttons on her PET, and soon enough, Lyria's Navi Crest appeared on Haseo's screen.

"Wow, a new Cross!" Haseo said. "Thanks, Atoli!"

"Hey, don't forget about me," Kaworu said, doing the same. Ballade's Navi Crest showed up on Haseo's PET as well.

"Thanks, guys," Haseo said. Then he got an idea.

"Hey, I know!" he said. "How about you help me out?"

"With what?" Atoli asked.

"You see, I'm part of a team of Net Battlers that helps keep the peace in the Net," Haseo explained. "We're always looking for new members, and you guys could be just what my leader's looking for. What do you say?"

"A chance to kick the tar out of bad guys?" Kaworu said with a smirk on his face. "Count me in."

"Yeah, I'll join," Atoli said. "It sounds like fun, and I get to help make a difference. That's good enough for me."

"Cool," Haseo said, smiling. "I'll call Chaud later and let him know you guys wanna help."

All of a sudden, the Net Battle machine started going out of control, sparking with electricity. In fact, every electrical device besides the PETs were going nuts. Haseo realized that Blademan was still in the machine, and he shouted, "Blademan, jack out now!"

Blademan reappeared inside Haseo's PET, which made him sigh with relief.

"What's going on?" Blademan asked. "It's like the machine just started overloading on electricity.

Just then, a call from Chaud came across Haseo's PET. He answered the call almost instantly.

"Hello?"

"Haseo, I'm picking up a massive distress signal from the End City security module," Chaud said. "I need you down there immediately. Megaman and Protoman are already on the scene."

"Got it," Haseo said. "I'll be bringing a couple of new members along too."

"New members, huh?" Chaud said. "OK. And in case things get hairy, Dr. Wily prepared these for you."

"Haseo, we just got new chip data," Blademan said. "They're all Elemental Sword attacks."

"Fire Sword, Aqua Sword, Electro Sword, and Bamboo Sword," Chaud said, listing off the chip data he sent Haseo. "He figured that since you liked Sword attacks so much, he'd send you a few of his. Use them wisely."

With that, Chaud hung up, and Haseo downloaded the data to 4 blank chips.

"Do you guys know where the security system is?" Haseo asked.

"Yeah, it's in End Area 3," Kaworu said. "C'mon, let's hurry. Don't want to keep your leader waiting."

Haseo nodded, and they headed to the nearest still working PC, which happened to be the statue in the middle of the park.

"Jack in, Blademan! Power up!"

"Jack in, Ballade! Power up!"

"Jack in, Lyria! Power up!"

* * *

Author's Note: So, two Robot Masters were reintroduced in this chapter. You all know about Ballade, but what about the other? Actually, the other was Lyria, who was based off of Splashwoman, known as one of the worst Robot Masters in the Megaman universe. Splashwoman just sounded so…bleh. So I gave her a new name, a new appearance, and better battle skills. Gee, aren't I nice?

Anyway, please read and review. And for those who say I use the Sol Cross too much, you're damn right I do. The Sol Cross really is as powerful as I make it out to be; I obliterated Nebula Grey with it in no time!

Strato Abyss signing out.


	9. A New Rivalry

Chapter 9: A New Rivalry

The three Net Navis beamed into End Area 1, running as fast as they could to get to the security system. By the time they'd gotten to End Area 2, the familiar blue exterior of Megaman appeared, Megabuster already drawn.

"Megaman!" Blademan shouted, trying to get his attention.

Megaman turned around and said, "Hey, Blademan. You missed out on one heck of a virus horde!"

"How bad was it?" Lyria asked.

"Nothing we couldn't handle!" Lan shouted from the other end. "But we can't waste any more time. Protoman might need our help!"

Off in the distance, a slight clanging sound was heard by the four.

"Looks like he's already getting busy," Blademan said, activating his mask and drawing his swords. "Let's go! I'm not letting him have all the fun!"

The four Navis rushed off to the security system as the battle ensued.

* * *

_Earlier…_

Protoman rushed up to End City's security system to see an odd Navi he'd never seen before messing with the power plant's electrical systems. It was a humanoid Navi, male, with black armor and jumpsuit. A few tufts of dark grey hair poked out from the back of his helmet, and he wielded two purple cyber swords.

"Hey!" Protoman shouted, getting the Navi's attention. The Navi turned and looked at him with red eyes. It gave Protoman a slight chill, but he shook it off and remained in his authoritative stance.

"I'm going to have to ask you to step away from the security system," Protoman said. "I'm placing you and your operator under arrest."

"Haha! Big words for someone stuck in the Cyberworld!" the NetOp said from the other line. "I would love to see you try, Mr. Official! Vex, get him!"

The black Navi named Vex launched himself at Protoman, and before he knew it, he was engaged in battle.

* * *

Blademan and the others made it to the security system to see Protoman already engaged in a battle with a very shady-looking Navi. He was extremely fast, and everyone could see that Protoman was really pushing himself.

"Wide Sword!" Protoman shouted, rushing the Navi again. The Navi dodged easily and sliced Protoman in the back, causing him to fall forward. He wasn't moving.

"Protoman's in trouble! We've gotta go help him!" Megaman shouted.

"Leave it to me! I'll drown him out!" Atoli shouted. "Aqua Wh-"

"Wait, Atoli!" Haseo said, grabbing her arm before she could slot in the chip. "We don't know what he's capable of, and from the looks of it, he doesn't know we're here. Let's try and land a sneak attack on him. If all of us hit him at once, we can beat him in one shot!"

"I don't think that'll work," Kaworu said.

"Why not?" Haseo asked curiously.

"Look," Kaworu said, pointing his finger at Haseo's display.

Haseo looked at his PET's display to see the black Navi looking at Blademan. However, it seemed like the Navi was looking at Haseo himself, and it sent a chill down his spine to stare into his glowing red eyes.

"So, there's more of you," the Navi said. "Wow, they must really be scraping the bottom of the barrel with you guys."

"What'd you say?!" Ballade said angrily.

"Calm down, Ballade," Blademan said, stepping forward. "OK, pal. You wanna fight? You got one!"

"Oh, so you think you can take me on alone, the ultimate Navi?" he said, laughing. "You will fall before the mighty Vex!"

"Heh, doesn't look so mighty to me," Haseo snickered.

Vex locked eyes with Haseo and said, "You're lucky I'm stuck in the Net or I'd give you a butt-kicking!"

"Looks like you're stuck with me, then," Blademan said, going into a battle stance. "So let's get started!"

"Very well! Vex, get him!" his NetOp shouted. "Step Sword, Battle Chip in! Download!"

Vex flew at Blademan at immeasurable speed, but Haseo was faster, slotting in an Area Steal to teleport Blademan behind him. Then he swiped his swords at Vex's back, only to hit thin air.

"Above you!" Ballade shouted.

Blademan looked up to see Vex above him, throwing down a few throwing stars, which hit the ground in front of him and exploded, sending Blademan flying back and sliding across the ground.

"Blademan, are you OK?!" Haseo shouted.

"Ugh, yeah, I'm OK," Blademan said, standing back up.

"Haha! How'd you like my Anti-Damage chip?!" Vex shouted. "But that was only a little taste of my power!"

"I'm not finished yet! Haseo, now!" Blademan shouted.

Haseo tapped a few buttons on his screen and said, "Ballade Cross, Initiate!"

Blademan flashed as his armor became a more bulky version of his own. After the transformation, Blademan's armor looked like Ballade's, but with the black and light blue color scheme. Blademan's swords also changed shape, turning into larger versions of themselves.

"Whoa! Talk about a tank!" Haseo said, impressed. "His defensive levels have increased, as well as his offense!"

Blademan went into a battle stance, greatswords out. Vex did the same, and the two were left facing each other, stances aggressive.

"Make your move," Vex said.

"Ladies first," Blademan taunted.

"Long Sword, Battle Chip in! Download!" Vex's operator shouted.

"Crack Saber, Cross Data in! Download!"

The two ran in and clashed swords, but the force of impact from Blademan's swords was enough to send Vex reeling back.

"Gah! This isn't over yet! Now, Kazuto!" Vex shouted.

"OK! Dark Sword, Dark Chip in! Download!"

An aura of dark energy exploded around Vex as the Dark Chip activated, and his swords grew to a much longer length than normal.

"You're finished now!" Kazuto shouted. "Destroy this rat, and his little friends, too!"

"Haseo! Can you hear me?!" Chaud shouted from another line.

"Yeah, I can hear you!" Haseo answered.

"Those 4 chips I gave you have a Program Advance associated with them!" Chaud said. "It may be the only thing that can combat that Dark Chip!"

"OK! Here goes nothing!"

Haseo pulled out his 4 new chips and slotted them in all at once, initiating a new Program Advance.

"Fire Sword, Aqua Sword, Electro Sword, Bamboo Sword, Battle Chips in! Download!" Haseo shouted. "Program Advance activate!"

Blademan's swords began to glow with the aura of all four sword attacks, and he could sense the power flowing through them.

"Element Sword, GO!"

Blademan ran in at a nearly invisible velocity, slicing Vex with almost everything he had. The dark Navi was barely fast enough to block his attacks, but eventually, he was hit with the full brunt of the Advance, and he flew back, slamming into the security system itself.

Blademan stepped up to the fallen Vex, pointing a sword at him. The Navi looked up at him, eyes closed and a smirk on his face.

"I'll withdraw for now, but the next time we meet, you won't be so lucky," Vex said before jacking out.

"We'll see each other again real soon, Haseo Tomokari," Vex's NetOp said. "I, Kazuto Kuramaru, swear upon it."

The line was cut, and Haseo was left glaring at his display.

"They got away..." Megaman said, stepping up beside Blademan.

"It doesn't matter," Blademan said, exiting Ballade Cross. "We saved the security system, and now I believe repairs are in order."

The two Navis stepped up and accessed the security system, making the necessary repairs and putting the defensive firewalls back up. Soon enough, the security system was running smoothly, free of any problems.

"There! All finished!" Megaman said happily. "Looks like we're done here."

"Well done, you two," said a voice from behind them. The two Navis turned to see an injured Protoman trying to get to his feet.

"Protoman!" Megaman shouted, running up to him and pulling him onto his shoulder. "Are you OK?"

"I'll be fine," Protoman said, lifting himself off of Megaman and trying to walk, only to fall back down.

"He's extremely damaged," Blademan said. "You need to jack out now before something bad happens."

"He's right, Protoman," Chaud said. "Jack out now."

"Roger that..." Protoman said before beaming out of End Area.

"We should jack out, too," Haseo said. "There's nothing that needs to be done here."

"Got it," Blademan said. He and the other Navis were beamed out of End Area.

* * *

Haseo was allowed to stay in End City for the rest of the weekend before he had to return to ACDC Town. As soon as he got back, he was challenged to a Net Battle by none other than Dex and Gutsman. Blademan had no trouble defeating him, which totally hurt the pride of both of them, but he earned their respect, and Dex allowed Gutsman to be Haseo's Link Navi, earning him a new Cross.

"That was too easy," Blademan quipped as they were heading home. "And did you see the look on Dex's face when I landed the finishing blow?"

"Priceless," Haseo said with a smile.

The two laughed as Haseo stepped through the front door of his house. After telling his mother and father about his experience back in his hometown, Haseo retired to his room, jacking Blademan into his PC to complete a virus sweep.

It wasn't long after that they heard someone enter Haseo's home page. Blademan whirled around to see none other than the Navi who was wreaking havoc on End Area, Vex.

"What are you doing here?!" Blademan shouted, drawing his swords and going into a battle stance.

"Isn't it obvious?" Vex said, drawing his swords as well. "We've got a little score to settle since my defeat at End Area."

"I did say that we'd see each other again soon, didn't I?" Kazuto said smugly from the other end. "I wouldn't be a good person if I didn't stick to my word."

"You wanna piece of me, come and get it!" Haseo said aggressively. "Blademan! It's go time! Battle routine, set!"

"Execute!" Blademan responded, activating his safety mask.

"You're mine, Tomokari!" Kazuto shouted.

* * *

_Later that night..._

Lan woke up to the sound of his PET ringing. He put his pillow over his head to try and drown out the sound, to no avail.

"Lan, you might want to take this," Megaman said groggily. "It's from Chaud."

"Chaud?! What does he want at a time like this?!" Lan said angrily, shoving the covers off and grabbing his PET. "He knows I have school tomorrow, right?!"

"Like it matters," Megaman said. "You're always late as it is."

Lan answered the call, saying, "Do you know how late it is?!"

"I'm sorry if I woke you up, but we've received some intel that an unregistered Net Navi is currently in Haseo's home page," Chaud said informatively. "I need you and Megaman to check it out and see if they need help."

"What?! Can't Haseo and Blademan handle it?!" Lan shot back. "Besides, isn't he there already?"

"Yes, and he's already engaged him in combat," Chaud said. "I have no doubt that they can handle themselves, but I need you to head down there and render assistance if needed."

Lan grumbled. "Fine. But you owe me one."

He hung up and powered up his PC, saying, "Jack in, Megaman! Power up!"

* * *

"Long Sword, Battle Chip in! Download!"

Blademan ran at his opponent and swung one of his swords as hard as he could, but Vex was already one step ahead, using his own Long Sword to block the attack.

"You'll need to do better than that if you wanna beat me!" Vex shouted. "Petty attacks like that won't work!"

"You sure about that?" Blademan said before sending his other sword slicing into Vex's abdomen. The Net Navi screamed and jumped back, rage pouring out of his crimson red eyes.

"Alright, that's it!" Vex shouted. He dashed at Blademan with a Wide Sword attack sent by Kazuto, only to have it reflected back at him by a Reflector 1 that Haseo had plugged in at the last second.

"Well, I see it'll take more than just simple swordplay to take you down," Vex said, calming down. "Kazuto! You know what to do!"

"Got it!" Kazuto responded, plugging in his greatest asset. "Dark Sword, Dark Chip in! Download!"

The dark aura exploded around Vex once again as he absorbed the immense power of the Dark Chip. One of his swords grew to a massive length and turned deep black.

"We've got our own counter for that!" Blademan shouted. "Haseo! Now!"

"Cyber Sword, Wide Sword, Long Sword, Battle Chips in! Download!" Haseo shouted, plugging the chips in one by one. "Program Advance activate!"

Both of Blademan's swords turned a blinding white and grew to the same length as Vex's Dark Sword, turning into Life Swords.

"Life Sword, GO!"

Blademan and Vex flew at each other, swinging as hard as they could and clashing blades. The two were at it for at least a couple minutes before Megaman beamed into Haseo's page.

"Blademan's in trouble!" Megaman shouted, drawing his Mega Buster. "I'm going in!"

Blademan was still fending off Vex's attacks when he noticed the blue bomber running up to them.

"Megaman, stay out of this!" Blademan shouted, dashing to the side and clashing swords with Vex again. "This is between me and him!"

Megaman didn't stop, however. "No! I'm here to help!"

"Dammit, Megaman, if you don't stay back, I will NOT hesitate to delete you!" Blademan shouted aggressively, jumping behind Vex and slicing, only to be blocked again.

Megaman stopped dead in his tracks this time, his face riddled with fear and confusion.

"D-Delete me...?!"

From the other end, Lan was trying to figure out why he would say something like that. But then, it hit him.

Blademan had found himself a true rival.

"Megaman, let's back off for now," Lan said calmly. Megaman looked at his brother with astonishment.

"B-But, Lan...!"

"Just do it," Lan said. "I think we should leave this to Haseo and Blademan."

"But why would you...Oh, I get it now," Megaman said, looking back at the battle with a smile on his face. "I'm gonna stay here, though. I'd like to see how this battle turns out."

Before long, the two swordsmen were moving so fast, it was like a flurry of swords and clashes. Blademan and Vex were moving at lightning-fast speeds, and the wind from their swings was generating a dome of air around them. Eventually, the clashing stopped, the wind dome shockwaved out, and Blademan and Vex were locked in a battle of willpower, both of them breathing heavily.

"Huff...huff...not bad for a rat," Vex said, smirking.

"Huff...huff...you're not so bad yourself," Blademan responded.

The two jumped back and landed, back into their battle stances.

"But I'm afraid that I'll have to end you right here and now!" Vex shouted.

"Just try it!" Blademan shot back. "I double-dog dare you!"

In the real world, the operators were getting ready to slot in their unique chips.

"Area Sword, Battle Chip in! Download!"

"Vex Wave, Battle Chip in! Download!"

Both Net Navis launched a wave of energy from their swords at each other, and the attacks collided together and exploded, sending out an even bigger shockwave that knocked Megaman off of his feet, sending him flying through the air and hitting the ground.

_Geez, that shockwave was intense!_ Megaman thought to himself.

The smoke cleared, and both operators gasped at the sight of both their Net Navis lying on the ground. Neither one was moving.

"Blademan?! Speak to me!" Haseo shouted frantically.

"Vex? Vex?!" Kazuto shouted, trying to rouse the unconscious Navi.

Soon enough, Blademan's eyes shot open, and he slowly got to his feet. Vex did the same, and the two were staring each other down once again.

"Well...looks like we're at a stalemate," Vex said.

"Seems that way," Blademan said.

The two Navis sheathed their swords. Vex looked at his operator and said, "I'm jacking out. I need to get some rest."

Vex beamed out of Haseo's home page, and Kazuto cleared his throat.

"I haven't had a worthy opponent since the Gospel incident," Kazuto said. "It was a good fight. I had fun."

"Kazuto..." Haseo said quietly. Then he smiled. "Yeah, it was fun."

"Haseo Tomokari, I'm throwing down the gauntlet," Kazuto said formally. "I propose a rivalry. Do you accept?"

Haseo smirked. "I accept your challenge, Kazuto Kuramaru. And you better stay on your toes, 'cause I won't be so easily matched next time."

A small grin leaked out of Kazuto's face, and the line was cut, leaving Haseo alone. Megaman walked up to Blademan, saying, "That was an amazing battle! It's like you two were meant to fight each other!"

"Heh...maybe you're right," Haseo said. "Blademan, go get some rest."

"Roger that," Blademan said, heading towards the temple.

"Megaman, let's jack out," Lan said from the other end. Megaman nodded and beamed out, leaving both Haseo and Blademan to collapse in their beds and go into a deep sleep.

* * *

Author's Note: And here's an update I KNOW has been anticipated. I even got a message from one of my readers asking what the hell happened. 67eboy, this chapter's dedicated to you, buddy. Please read and review.

Strato Abyss signing out.


End file.
